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Shutdowns are a repeat element of US politics – but the current situation appears especially difficult to resolve due to shifting political forces along with deep-seated animosity among both major parties.

Certain federal operations face a temporary halt, and about 750,000 employees are expected to be put on furlough without pay as both political parties can't agree regarding budget legislation.

Legislative attempts to resolve the impasse continue to fall short, with little visibility on a clear resolution path this time because each side – as well as the President – perceive advantages in digging in.

These are several key factors in which things feel different in 2025.

1. For Democrats, the focus is on Trump – beyond healthcare issues

Democratic supporters have insisted for months that their party more forcefully fights the Trump administration. Well now Democratic leaders have an opportunity to demonstrate their responsiveness.

Earlier this year, the Senate's top Democrat faced strong criticism for helping pass a Republican spending bill thus preventing a shutdown in the spring. This time he's digging in.

This is a chance for Democrats to show their ability to reclaim certain authority from a presidency pursuing its agenda assertively with determined action.

Refusing to back the Republican spending plan comes with political risk that the wider public may become impatient as the dispute drags on and impacts accumulate.

Democratic representatives are using the budget standoff to put a spotlight on expiring health insurance subsidies together with Republican-approved federal health program reductions affecting low-income populations, which are both unpopular.

Additionally, they're attempting to restrict the President's use of presidential authority to cancel or delay funding approved by Congress, which he has done in international assistance and various federal programs.

2. For Republicans, they see potential

The administration leader and one of his key officials have made little secret of the fact that they smell a chance to make more of the cutbacks to the federal workforce that have featured the current presidential term to date.

The nation's leader personally stated recently that the government closure had afforded him an "unprecedented opportunity", adding he intended to reduce funding for "Democrat agencies".

Administration officials said it would be left with a "challenging responsibility" of mass lay-offs to maintain critical federal operations should the impasse persist. The Press Secretary said this was just "fiscal sanity".

The extent of possible job cuts is still uncertain, but the White House have been consulting with the Office of Management and Budget, the budgeting office, which is headed by the administration's budget director.

The administration's financial chief has previously declared the halting of government financial support for regions governed by the opposition party, such as NYC and Chicago.

3. There's little trust on either side

While previous shutdowns typically involved late-night talks between the two parties in an effort to get government services running again, there appears to be minimal cooperative willingness of collaboration this time.

Conversely, animosity prevails. Political tensions continued over the weekend, as both sides blaming each other regarding the deadlock's origin.

The legislative leader from the majority party, accused Democrats with insufficient commitment about negotiating, and maintaining positions during discussions "to get political cover".

Simultaneously, the opposition's chief made similar charges against their counterparts, saying that a Republican promise to discuss healthcare subsidies after operations resume cannot be trusted.

The President himself has escalated tensions by posting a computer-created controversial depiction of the Senate leader along with another senior opposition figure, in which the representative appears wearing a large Mexican-style sombrero and facial hair.

The representative with party colleagues denounced this as discriminatory, a characterization rejected by the administration's second-in-command.

4. The US economy is fragile

Analysts expect about 40% of the federal workforce – over 800,000 workers – to face furlough as a result of the government closure.

This will reduce consumer expenditure – with broader economic consequences, as environmental permitting, patent approvals, payments to contractors and other kinds of government activity tied to business cease functioning.

The closure additionally introduces new uncertainty into an economy already being roiled from multiple factors including tariffs, earlier cuts to government spending, enforcement actions and technological advancements.

Analysts estimate potential reduction of as much as 0.2 percentage points off US economic growth for each week it lasts.

However, economic activity generally rebounds the majority of interrupted operations after a shutdown ends, similar to recovery patterns after major environmental events.

That could be one reason why financial markets have shown limited reaction to the ongoing impasse.

Conversely, experts indicate that if the President carries out proposed significant workforce reductions, the damage could be more long-lasting.