How the shutdown in Washington ends
America is heading for an almighty fight over presidential authority
THE GOVERNMENT has partially shut down. Again. No other advanced democracy has government shutdowns. In America they have become almost routine. This is the third since Donald Trump became president and by far the most damaging. The others were resolved quickly; this is already the second-longest on record. It is not happening because America is in turmoil: the country is not at war, unemployment is as low as it has ever been. It is happening because that is what the president wants.
What is playing out in Washington is the denouement of a political fight (see article). Mr Trump was elected on a promise to build a wall on the southern border, though Mexico was supposed to pay for it. The new Democratic majority in the House is reluctant to give the president a victory on his best-known policy. The Senate majority leader, who might be able to end the stand-off, is AWOL.
This article appeared in the Leaders section of the print edition under the headline "How America’s shutdown ends"
From the January 12th 2019 edition
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