The U.S. government is facing a shutdown. Here's why, and what each side wants

The U.S. government is likely heading for a shutdown on Wednesday as congressional Democrats and Republicans hit an impasse over how to continue to fund the federal government.

At midnight, unless Republicans and Democrats in Congress agree on a deal to temporarily fund federal agencies with Wednesday's start of a new fiscal year, the U.S. will enter its 15th government shutdown since 1981.

This will trigger disruptions in a range of U.S. government services and the furlough of hundreds of thousands of civil servants.

Budget-related showdowns have become a routine feature in Washington as the nation's politics have grown increasingly dysfunctional, though they are often resolved at the last minute. The government last shut down for 35 days in 2018 and 2019, during Trump's first term,