The longest-running US government shutdown occurred in 2018-2019. The shutdown ran on for more than 22 full days. Previously, the most prolonged shutdown went on for 21 days.
The partial shutdown commenced on December 22nd, 2018. What triggered it? Apparently, President Donald Trump's demand for $5 billion to fund his pet project- the full-length US- Mexico border wall. Interestingly, both the Republican and Democratic congressmen had agreed on a $1.6 billion compromise figure before the President's demands. But the President rejected the deal. He argued that while the $5 billion would not be sufficient to build an entire wall, it could build a section that would effectively block off 215 more miles (this is in addition to the 120 miles the government was currently building using available funds). Hence, the shutdown countdown began in earnest.
What was the immediate result? 420, 000 federal workers were doing without pay. An additional 380,000 were furloughed without pay. There were fears the tax refunds would be delayed. In fact, the Women and Infant Children (WIC) payments would have to be cut off for lack of money.
Of course, most Americans are quite familiar with government shutdowns. Despite this, government shutdowns are a relatively more recent phenomenon. The first government shutdown occurred following the 1974 Congressional Budget Act. Since that time, the US Congress has failed in its duty to authorize federal government funding on 21 occasions.
Bu the first six situations never affected the government functions significantly. Later on, in 1980-81, Attorney General Benjamin Civiletti issued opinions that sparked the government treatment of "funding gaps" as either a full or partial government shutdown.
The first US government shutdown occurred in 1976 when Gerald Ford was President. Why did it happen? President Ford vetoed the Department of Health, Education, Welfare, and Labor funding bill. But Democrats quickly overrode the President's veto, preventing an immediate shutdown. However, on October 11th, 1974, the shutdown commenced when the government failed to access funding.
The Second shutdown occurred in 1977 under Jimmy Carter. It happened because the Senate sought to lift restrictions on the Medicaid dollar-use to find abortions. Previously such funding was allowed for cases of incest, rape, and whenever the mother's health was endangered. Then, funding was only granted to abortions that were necessary to save a mother's life. However, the House voted to maintain the status quo- leading to a stricter ban. By the September 30th deadline, both Houses could not agree on thrashing a deal. This led to a funding gap that caused the shutdown. It all ended on October 31st when Congress-later- reached a deal on the abortion issue.
The third shutdown was to come in November 1977 (still under Jimmy Carter). Why? The abortion ghost came back! But the matter ended when the President signed a second short-term extension. The fourth shutdown took place December 9th 1977- still under Jimmy Carter! The abortion ghost was back for the third time in a row! The dispute was resolved later, and the funding was extended to cover incest, rape, and the mother's welfare. But in 4 years- under the Ronald Regan presidency, this funding-for mothers- was yet again quashed.
The fifth shutdown occurred in 1978 ( under Jimmy Carter). This time the was a new element to the dispute- the HEW funding. At the same time, President Carter had vetoed a bill touching on defense spending since it sought to fund a nuclear-powered aircraft. The President considered this wasteful and believed it fell under the public works docket. In the end, the President won the dispute, stopping the funding of the aircraft and other disagreeable projects.
The sixth shutdown occurred in 1979 (under Jimmy Carter). The aborting dispute re-emerged. The House also sought higher pay for the civil service and congressional staff. The changes were eventually made but with a caveat- there would be (also) some funding for abortions done due to incest and rape (but not on the grounds of the mother's health).
The Seventh shutdown occurred under President Ronald Reagan in 1981. The functions of federal governments were badly curtailed. The President furloughed 241,000 workers of the federal government. What caused the situation? President had demanded $ 8.4 billion spending cuts. He actually promised to veto any bill that did not cut that amount by half. But the Senate was not ready to comply. Instead, the House insisted on civil service and Congressional staff pay hikes and a slashing of the defense budget. Eventually, the two Houses of Congress struck a deal that-nevertheless- fell short of the President's demands by $2 billion. Thus, President Reagan vetoed the new deal, leading to a government shutdown. But the stalemate soon ended after the passage of a Congress resolution to reach an agreement.
The eighth shutdown occurred in 1982. Why? Congress and President Reagan forgot to keep the funds' deadline due to some social engagements! This means that government operations could not be financed for at least 2 and a half months. Interestingly, President Reagan had invited all Congressmen to the White House for a barbecue. House Democrats, on their part, were holding a separate $1,000 a-plate dinner to raise funds.