The shutdown cost the US economy more than Trump wanted for the border wall

Some federal workers relied on donations during the shutdown.
Some federal workers relied on donations during the shutdown.
Image: AP Photo/Ted S. Warren
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For 35 days, the US government was partially shut down. During that time, 800,000 federal workers went without pay, national parks were vandalized, federal small-business loans were suspended, initial public offerings were delayed, Native American tribes lost assistance, and subsidized rent checks went unpaid, along with numerous other impacts.

In total, the US economy lost at least $6 billion during the shutdown, S&P Global Ratings said on Friday, according to Reuters. That’s more than the $5.7 billion president Trump demanded from Congress to build his border wall between the US and Mexico—the demand that caused the protracted shutdown.

Trump agreed to end the shutdown on Friday (Jan. 25) by signing a bill to fund the government for three weeks. It was the longest partial shutdown in the country’s history.