Hours after the start of the second temporary shutdown of the U.S. government, the House of Representatives of the United States approved a $400 billion budget bill early Friday, February 9, with 240 votes in favor and 186 against, to end the shutdown. After the U.S. Senate failed to vote on the budget to fund the government, the U.S. government was 'shut down' for the second time in three weeks. Previously, due to a lack of agreement among representatives on federal funding, parts of the government were shut down for three days on January 18, coinciding with the one-year anniversary of Donald Trump's presidency. Ultimately, congressional representatives reached an agreement on a temporary funding plan for the federal government by Thursday. However, the deadline for government funding was set to expire at midnight on Thursday. Following the start of the second temporary shutdown, U.S. Senate leaders expressed hope that this new shutdown would not last more than a few hours and that they would manage to pass government funding. As it turned out, the House of Representatives passed the budget bill in the early hours of Friday, and thus this second shutdown lasted only five and a half hours, according to the Associated Press. One of the issues that has so far prevented the approval of the annual U.S. budget has been the disagreement between Republicans and Democrats in Congress over the DACA program, which concerns the status of children who have mostly entered the U.S. illegally from Mexico and other South American countries or were born in the U.S. to non-American parents. The U.S. President announced months ago that he would terminate this program established during Barack Obama's presidency and stated that he would not agree to continue the DACA program under any circumstances. In contrast, Democrats have declared that the approval of the 2018 U.S. budget is contingent upon resolving this issue. Meanwhile, Republicans argue that immigration issues should not be mixed with budget issues and that decisions can be made about this 'in the future.'
With a vote in Congress, the temporary shutdown of the U.S. government ended
The U.S. government experienced a brief shutdown due to budget disagreements, but Congress quickly passed a funding bill, ending the shutdown after only five and a half hours. The conflict primarily revolves around the DACA program, with Republicans and Democrats at an impasse over immigration and budget negotiations.
👥 Key Players
📰 What Happened
The U.S. government experienced a brief shutdown due to budget disagreements but quickly passed a funding bill, ending the shutdown after only five and a half hours. The conflict primarily revolves around the DACA program, with Republicans and Democrats at an impasse over immigration and budget negotiations.
- The shutdown lasted only five and a half hours.
- The main contention was over the DACA program and its relation to the federal budget.
💡 Why It Matters
📚 Background
The DACA program, established during the Obama administration, protects certain undocumented immigrants brought to the U.S. as children. The ongoing debate over this program illustrates broader issues of immigration policy in the U.S.
🏷️ Entities Mentioned
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