Today marks the 38th day of the U.S. government shutdown. This gives the 119th Congress the dubious distinction of presiding over the longest government shutdown in U.S. history—the prior longest shutdown was for 35 days between December 22, 2018, and January 25, 2019.
Because this shutdown is not associated with a debt ceiling extension, it has afforded Congress more time for shenanigans. Most members were waiting until after Tuesday’s state and local elections to approach the negotiating table, in the hope that the results would be viewed as a plebiscite on the shutdown and give their party a little more negotiating leverage. With elections now behind us and the Democrats coming out on top, it looks as though it will be up to the Republicans to make some concessions or to take routes that enable them to pass legislation without a 60-vote majority.
Also this week, the Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) listened to oral arguments on the president’s use of the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) to raise tariffs for a broad swath of countries. SCOTUS must decide whether this use was permitted or not, and what might happen if not.
In this Economics Weekly, Richard de Chazal discusses the current state of the shutdown and how it could end; what the Trump administration may do next if IEEPA’s use is deemed unjustified; and the latest employment data, given today would have seen the release of the October employment report.