There was a time when the U.S. government shutdown issue really attracted a lot of attention. I remember that back then, John Thune said in the Senate that this deadlock might see a turnaround, because moderate Democrats began to consider making compromises.

The impact of a shutdown is actually quite serious. Food assistance is interrupted and air travel is disrupted—these directly affect the daily lives of ordinary people, and they also put federal employees in difficult situations. It is precisely these external pressures that have sped up negotiations on all sides.

On the Republican side, they are planning a new temporary appropriations bill and want to move the talks forward. However, the Democrats’ position is a bit complicated. They have not officially promised to make concessions, but progressive lawmakers have already supported passing standalone bills to ease the hardships caused by the U.S. government shutdown.

To be honest, this kind of political deadlock ultimately can only be resolved if all sides are willing to step back a little. It looks like both sides have felt the pressure coming from the outside, and negotiations are expected to make progress.