After 16 days of closed national parks, employee furlough and all around annoyance, Congress has decided to resolve the government shutdown by extending funding for the government until January 1 and allowing the Treasury to borrow until February. However, the House and the Senate still need to agree on a spending budget by December 21 in order to prevent another shutdown.
Not only did the government shutdown temporarily close many government systems, but it has also negatively affected the U.S. economy according to the Secretary of Treasury, Jacob Lew. According to The Huffington Post, America has lost “$24 billion dollars in economic activity,” but it is expected to have a quick recovery. The Republican party has suffered a severe drop in approval ratings because of recent dividedness. Lew says that both parties have agreed that another shutdown cannot happen again. They have concluded that it was not a good solution and have promised that it will not reoccur.
Another government financial battle is about to ensue, however, as Congress now has to decide what cuts to make and where. The defense budget is expected to suffer the most since the sequestration, automatic cuts set to take place in December, decrease the Pentagon’s spending by 20 billion dollars.
Tennessee Senator Bob Corker admits, “I have to believe that the American people are totally fatigued with this issue, and to be candid, I am pretty fatigued with it myself. It is almost an embarrassment to bring it up.”
Hopefully, Congress will be able to come to a consecutive decision before funding is cut off in January. Until then, the American people can only hope that their government will keep the betterment of the country’s population in mind while attempting to come to a conclusion.
Sources: The Huffington Post,
The New York Times
Grace Nealy 
Jason Karch 
Lenora Kirkland