If you are like me, you have questions and concerns about the latest government shutdown. As I said recently, it feels like a political football, something both parties keep kicking back and forth while the country waits for resolution.

Federal funding expired at midnight Sept. 30, 2025, when Congress failed to pass spending legislation for the new fiscal year. As a result, the federal government entered another shutdown at 12:01 a.m. Oct. 1.

Unfortunately, this is nothing new. Funding lapses have occurred under presidents of both parties.

At 23 days and counting, the current federal shutdown is now the second-longest in U.S. history, surpassed only by the 2018–2019 partial shutdown that lasted 35 days under President Donald Trump.

Here are the next four longest on record:

• 35 days: Dec. 22, 2018 – Jan. 25, 2019 (Trump)
• 21 days: Dec. 16, 1995 – Jan. 6, 1996 (Clinton)
• 17 days: Oct. 1 – 17, 1978 (Carter)
• 16 days: Oct. 1 – 17, 2013 (Obama)

The standoff is once again a partisan battle. President Donald Trump, House Speaker Mike Johnson and Senate Majority Leader John Thune lead Republicans in negotiations with House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, who head the Democrats.

The disagreement centers on whether to pass a clean funding bill or include major health care provisions.

According to the nonpartisan website GovFacts.org, democrats refuse to fund the government unless Republicans extend expiring Affordable Care Act subsidies and reverse recent Medicaid cuts. Republicans say Democrats are holding the government hostage over unrelated demands. They want a ‘clean’ funding bill first, with policy debates later.

Republicans argue that policy debates, especially on health care, should be handled separately from the spending bill. Democrats contend that extending premium tax credits for individuals who buy health insurance through the Affordable Care Act marketplace is essential before those credits expire Dec. 31, 2025.

Democrats also cite March 2025, when Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer allowed a Republican funding bill to pass without policy concessions, as a situation they want to avoid.

While most Democratic lawmakers remain united, several, including Sens. Catherine Cortez Masto of Nevada, John Fetterman of Pennsylvania and Angus King of Maine, have sided with the GOP on some procedural votes.

The effects of the shutdown are far-reaching. Hundreds of thousands of federal workers are furloughed or working without pay. National parks are closed or operating with minimal staff. Air traffic controllers, Transportation Security Administration officers and other critical workers remain on duty but unpaid. FEMA disaster recovery and other federal programs face severe slowdowns.

The U.S. Senate has now failed more than a dozen times to reach agreement on a funding measure. Republicans have proposed a short-term bill to fund the government through Nov. 21, arguing that the shutdown should end before health care negotiations begin. Democrats have rejected that proposal, saying it fails to protect Americans who rely on ACA subsidies.

As of this writing, there is no clear path to reopening the government. Negotiations continue behind closed doors, but neither side appears willing to concede on key priorities.

Until next time (hopefully with better news).

(Much of this information came from GovFacts.org and verified reporting by AP News, Reuters and CBS News.)

(Kyle Lovern is a longtime journalist in the Tug Valley. He is now a retired freelance writer and columnist for the Mountain Citizen.)