The reopening of the United States government after the longest shutdown in its history offers little cause for celebration. It marks not so much a resolution as it does a temporary truce ~ a pause in a political war that has left both sides weakened and the public disillusioned. While federal workers will finally receive back pay and government operations resume, the broader damage, to governance, credibility, and civic trust, will linger long after the pay cheques clear. At the heart of the shutdown was a struggle less about policy and more about power.

What began as a standoff over healthcare subsidies for low-income Americans became a symbol of Washington’s deeper dysfunction. Senate Democrats triggered the shutdown to press their case, but after six weeks of national disruption, they settled for a vague promise of a vote on the issue ~ a concession too minor to justify the scale........

© The Statesman