US government shutdown enters 36th day to become longest in history

Shutdown beats record set during Trump's first term as succession of Senate votes fails to yield breakthrough

The US government shutdown became the longest in history on Wednesday, crossing the 36-day mark with no end in sight as Republican and Democratic senators remained at loggerheads over restarting funding to shuttered federal departments.

The shutdown beat the previous 35-day record set in December 2018 and January 2019 during Donald Trump's first term, when government funding legislation was held up over his insistence on including money to build a wall along the border with Mexico.