Emily Wanless is an assistant professor of government and international affairs/political science at Augustana College in Sioux Falls. Congress has missed the deadline for averting the first partial government shutdown in 17 years. As the clock struck midnight Monday, House Republicans were demanding that the Senate negotiate their demand for a one-year delay in making millions of people buy health insurance under President Barack Obama's 2010 health care law. Minutes before midnight, the White House ordered a shutdown. The Democratic Senate on Monday twice rejected GOP demands to delay key portions of the Affordable Care Act as a condition for keeping the government open.
Government Shutdown
