What this means is that the U.S. government needs money every year to keep running. For example the government needs money to pay workers, fund programs, keep national parks open, etc. But if lawmakers don’t pass a bill called the Appropriations Bill, to approve that money on time, the government can’t spend it legally.
When this happens, many federal offices and services shut down but ‘essential’ things like the military, Social Security checks, air traffic control and border patrol keep running but other things like museums and monuments stop running or slow down tremendously until the Appropriations Bill is passed.
The cause of government shutdowns is usually a disagreement between the two parties in Congress regarding the allocation of federal funds. Right now, Congress has yet to agree on funding because of a debate on healthcare.
Democrats are demanding that Republicans agree to extend the Affordable Care Act funding that is set to expire at the end of the year and that they reverse any Medicaid cuts in President Trump’s tariff laws.
Even though the Republicans control the majority of Congress, they still need seven votes in the Senate to reopen the government.
To keep the government from shutting down, Democrats and Republicans in congress have to come to a compromise but as of right now, they have yet to do so.
