US government shuts down again after Congress misses funding deadline

View, from the balcony, of congressmen and congresswomen on the house floor as the 115th Congress is called into session on its opening day, Washington DC, January 3, 2017. (Photo by Mark Reinstein/Corbis via Getty Images)

The United States entered a partial government shutdown early Saturday after Congress failed to pass a spending package before a midnight deadline, leaving funding expired for several major federal departments.

Although the lapse is expected to be brief, large parts of government, including the Department of Defence, State Department and Department of Health and Human Services, were affected after lawmakers missed the cutoff.

On Friday, the US Senate approved legislation to fund five outstanding departments through the end of the fiscal year in September, alongside a separate two-week stopgap measure to keep the Department of Homeland Security running. The short extension is intended to give lawmakers time to negotiate changes to immigration enforcement following the killing of two US citizens by federal immigration officers in Minnesota earlier this month.

The package now awaits approval in the House of Representatives, which is in recess until Monday. Donald Trump has endorsed the deal, and a vote is expected shortly after lawmakers return to Washington.

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Just a week earlier, Congress appeared close to passing a sweeping $1.3 trillion spending bill covering defence, health, transportation and housing. Those plans collapsed after the second fatal shooting of a US citizen in Minneapolis by immigration officers, prompting Democrats to withhold support unless changes were made to enforcement practices.

Under the Senate agreement, lawmakers approved appropriations bills covering defence, labour, health and education, transportation and housing, state, and financial services, while delaying a longer-term decision on homeland security funding.

Because most federal offices are closed over the weekend, the immediate effects of the shutdown are expected to be limited if the House acts quickly next week. Even so, the bill faces procedural hurdles. Mike Johnson, the House speaker, holds a narrow majority, and resistance from conservative Republicans — particularly the House Freedom Caucus — could complicate its passage.

Democrats are demanding significant changes to how immigration officers operate. Their proposals include banning the use of masks, mandating body cameras, tightening rules on home entry and warrants, ending so-called roving patrols, and establishing clearer use-of-force standards. They are also calling for stronger identification requirements and independent investigations into alleged misconduct.

Some of the proposals have drawn cautious interest from Republicans following the Minneapolis shootings. However, others remain opposed. James Lankford said he saw no need for further changes, while Markwayne Mullin argued that immigration officers were simply enforcing the law as directed.

“We’re not going to keep ICE from doing their job,” Mullin said, adding that voters had backed stricter enforcement.

With the Senate vote complete, attention now shifts to the House, where lawmakers must decide whether to accept the compromise or risk extending the shutdown beyond the weekend.

Oluwatosin Ogunjuyigbe is a writer and journalist who covers business, finance, technology, and the changing forces shaping Nigeria’s economy. He focuses on turning complex ideas into clear, compelling stories.

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