The United States entered a government shutdown Wednesday with President Donald Trump and Democrats in an acrimonious stand-off and banking on the other side to blink first in what could be a prolonged crisis.

With the government out of money after Trump and Congress failed to agree on a funding deal, federal agencies -- except for essential services -- stopped work from midnight.

Around 750,000 public sector workers are expected to be placed on furlough -- a kind of enforced leave, with pay withheld until they return to work.

Essential workers such as the military may be forced to work without pay and some will likely begin noticing missing checks by next week.

Shutdowns are a periodic feature of gridlocked Washington, although this is the first since a record 35-day pause in 2019, wh

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