Sadiq S BhatWashington, DC — Once again, the US capital is paralysed. The lights are still flickering in the Senate as Week 3 of the government shutdown has just started.
With no sign of an off-ramp and no serious talks underway, there is no hint of when the American federal machine might come back to life.
There are multiple indications that the White House is bracing for the long haul. Inside the West Wing, budget officials are preparing "to batten down hatches and ride out" the storm.
US troops and law enforcement will still be paid, but for thousands of civilian employees, the waiting has turned to dread.
Furloughs have now stretched well into the third week. Some agencies have begun quiet layoffs. Others have warned that more could follow if no deal is struck before Friday.
The question hanging in the air isn't when the shutdown will end, but how far President Donald Trump is willing to push it.
Trump's latest move
The president's latest decision to sidestep Congress and ensure military pay has stripped lawmakers of a key bargaining chip.
It was a deft political move, insulating Trump from the image of soldiers going unpaid while placing the burden squarely on Congress. But it also removed one of the strongest incentives for lawmakers to find common ground.
On Tuesday afternoon, Trump, hosting Argentina's President Javier Milei at the White House, told reporters that "Democrats are getting killed in the shutdown because we're closing up programmes that are Democrat programmes."
"We’re going to have a list of them on Friday. We're not closing up Republican programmes because we think they work."
Meanwhile, on Capitol Hill, exhaustion has hardened into frustration.
Senate Majority Leader John Thune has floated the idea of a short-term bridge bill, but neither side appears ready to cross it.
The last continuing resolution expired nearly two weeks ago. The new one, still being drafted, remains caught up in disagreements over healthcare subsidies and budget caps.
Democrats are pressing for an extension of expiring health insurance tax credits before the Affordable Care Act marketplaces reopen on November 1.
Republicans argue that any such deal would amount to a political bailout of Obamacare. Democrats are holding the government hostage over subsidies, the Republican thinking goes, and the Conservatives are in no mood to budge.
Senate Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, on the other hand, accuses the White House of "manufacturing chaos" to score political points.
"The president wants a shutdown he can control," he said. "We want a government that works."
Real-world cost
Beyond the political theatre, the shutdown's effects are spreading.
More than 4,000 federal workers have received reduction-in-force notices since last week.
The Smithsonian museums and the National Zoo are shuttered. Research labs across Maryland and Virginia have taken cuts. Small business loans are frozen. Aid payments to farmers have stalled.
The White House insists the measures are temporary, but frustration is palpable. "It's tough to hit pause on work that really matters," a furloughed CDC employee told TRT World.
"But our team is not losing steam. Once we're back, we'll jump right back in."
She declined to be named, citing privacy concerns.
Airports and anger
While this unfolds, the Department of Homeland Security has found itself at the centre of attention after a video message from Secretary Kristi Noem began appearing at airport security lines.
In the clip, Noem blames Democrats for the shutdown, telling travellers that "many TSA employees are working without pay."
Several airports, including Las Vegas, Seattle, and New York’s major hubs, have refused to play the video.
The dispute highlights how deeply the shutdown has seeped into daily American life.
As airport queues get longer, permit processing has slowed down, with even national park restrooms padlocked.
For now, markets remain calm. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said on Monday that while investors "expect a resolution," the shutdown is starting to hit the real economy.
"This is getting serious. It's starting to affect the real economy. It's starting to affect people's lives," he added.
Furloughs and delayed paycheques are reducing spending. Federal data releases, including the jobs report and inflation numbers, have been postponed.
The Federal Reserve is scheduled to meet later this month amid growing uncertainty. Analysts say the absence of key economic data could complicate decisions on interest rate cuts.
Political brinkmanship
House Speaker Mike Johnson has warned that the nation is "barrelling toward one of the longest shutdowns in American history."
The current impasse has already matched the duration of the 2013 shutdown and is closing in on the record 35-day standoff of 2018–2019.
Still, both sides remain dug in. Republicans argue that Democrats are using the crisis to repackage healthcare demands.
"It’s day 13 of the Trump-Republican shutdown, and House Republicans have actually now cancelled votes for the third consecutive week because they’d rather keep the government shut down than deal with the cost-of-living crisis that exists in the United States of America," House Minority Leader Jeffries said on MSNBC.
As the shutdown enters its third week, it is no longer just a budget dispute.
Each day that passes raises the question: how much longer can Democrats and Republicans keep the government on pause?
