The United States government commenced a shutdown early Wednesday following unsuccessful budget negotiations between Trump and lawmakers, primarily due to disagreements over Democratic demands for increased health care spending. Federal operations commenced a shutdown at 12:01 a.m. following the Senate’s failure to pass a stopgap bill that had previously secured approval in the House of Representatives. Attributing responsibility to the Democrats for the impasse, Trump cautioned that the government shutdown might be leveraged as a strategy to redefine federal priorities, potentially undermining his political adversaries. The current shutdown is the first instance of government closure since the historic 35-day halt almost seven years ago, which occurred during Trump’s initial term in office. The previous shutdown was prompted by a deadlock over funding for a border wall, which led to a suspension of government operations.