The United States has entered its longest government shutdown ever, surpassing the 35-day record set during Donald Trump’s first term, with mounting economic losses and warnings of nationwide travel chaos as the political impasse over health care funding drags on.
Since Congress failed to approve funding past September 30, nearly 1.4 million federal employees from air traffic controllers to park wardens have either been furloughed or are working without pay. Analysts estimate the shutdown is costing the US economy around $15 billion each week, with ripple effects across aviation, retail and social welfare sectors.
A report released by the Congressional Budget Office on Wednesday shows spending loss from the government shutdown will cost the U.S. between $7 billion to $14 billion in gross domestic product—the latest of many economic ails from the closure.