The government shut down at 12:01 a.m. Wednesday after lawmakers did little to prevent it over the last two days.

Republicans are adamant that their proposed measure to keep the government ticking for the next seven weeks, already approved by the GOP-held House, should be passed with no baggage attached in the Senate.

Democrats are equally emphatic that their support, which Republicans need to pass the legislation through the upper chamber, will only be given if there are concessions from the GOP on health care.

A Monday White House meeting between President Trump and the top congressional leaders in both parties achieved basically nothing.

This is the first shutdown since midway through Trump’s first term.

A shutdown does not equate to an instant collapse in all government functions. Mandatory spending — the dispensation of Social Security checks, for example — continues. “Essential workers” will stay on the job, though the term is hazily defined.

Shutdowns have some instant effects, such as the likely shuttering of national parks and federally funded museums, and the ramifications grow deeper with time. During the last shutdown, in late 2018 and early 2019, Trump gave ground after five weeks as complications mounted.

Here are the five takeaways on how we got here and what it means.

Democratic leaders are under pressure from their base

The current shutdown fight can’t be understood without reference to what happened during a funding standoff in March.

Back then, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) decided to accommodate Republicans in keeping the government open, fearful that a........

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