President Trump signed a bill on Wednesday night to reopen the government and officially end the 43-day shutdown after the House earlier passed a bipartisan funding package.
Why it matters: Trump's signature on the bill ends the longest-ever federal government shutdown, which left thousands of federal workers without pay and disrupted services across the country for nearly seven weeks.
- The package passed 222-209. Two Republicans, Reps. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) and Greg Steube (R-Fla.), voted with the majority of Democrats against the bill.
- Six Democrats, Reps. Jared Golden (D-Maine), Adam Gray (D-Calif.), Don Davis (D-N.C.), Marie Gluesenkamp Perez (D-Wash.), Tom Suozzi (D-N.Y.) and Henry Cuellar (D-Texas.), voted in support.
The latest: Trump said before signing the bill while surrounded by smiling Republican lawmakers including House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) that shutting down the government is "no way to run a country.'
- He added: "I hope we can all agree that the government should never be shut down again."
State of play: House Democratic leadership formally whipped against the bill since it does not extend expiring Affordable Care Act subsidies.
- "The Senate-negotiated package does absolutely nothing to address the Republican health care crisis," read a whip notice from House Minority Whip Katherine Clark's (D-Mass.) office sent out earlier this week.
The details: The package funds the government through Jan. 30, reverses federal layoffs that happened after Oct. 1 and funds key agencies through the rest of the fiscal year.
- After 40 days, eight Senate Democrats broke with their party in support of a bipartisan deal to reopen the government.
- Their deal with Senate Republicans rests on the promise of a vote on extending Affordable Care Act subsidies next month — but it faces an uphill climb in the Senate and is not likely to be voted on in the House.
- That has left many Democrats furious, with some calling on Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) to step down as a result.
Between the lines: Wednesday's vote was the House's first in 54 days.
- Lawmakers were on recess for the entirety of the shutdown, and hadn't been in session since passing a government funding bill in September.
- The chamber is leaving town for the rest of the week, but lawmakers are expected to return next week to tackle a backlog of unfinished business.
Go deeper: The bill to reopen the government would shut down these THC products
Editor's note: This article has been updated with comment from President Trump and to reflect that he signed the bill to reopen the government.
