NEW DELHI: President Donald Trump on Wednesday signed legislation to end the longest government shutdown in US history, roughly two hours after the House of Representatives voted to restore food assistance programs, pay hundreds of thousands of federal workers, and revive the nation’s strained air-traffic control system.

The Republican-controlled House approved the funding package 222–209, with Trump’s backing helping to keep his party largely unified against fierce opposition from Democrats. Many House Democrats criticized the measure, frustrated that the 43-day standoff—sparked by a Senate impasse—failed to deliver an agreement extending federal health insurance subsidies.

Trump’s signature follows Senate passage of the bill earlier in the week. Federal employees furloughed during the shutdown could return to work as soon as Thursday, though it remains unclear how quickly government operations will fully resume. The measure funds agencies through January 30, extending federal spending while continuing to add about $1.8 trillion annually to the government’s $38 trillion debt.

“I feel like I just lived a Seinfeld episode. We just spent 40 days and I still don’t know what the plotline was,” said Rep. David Schweikert (R–Ariz.), comparing the shutdown to the aimless escapades of the 1990s sitcom. “I really thought this would be like 48 hours—people would vent, have their moment, and then we’d get back to work. What’s happened now when rage is policy?”

The shutdown’s end brings some hope that critical services—especially those affecting air travel—can recover before the busy Thanksgiving travel period in two weeks. The restart of food aid to millions of families may also ease household budgets as the Christmas shopping season approaches.

It also restores the flow of economic data from key federal agencies, information that investors, policymakers, and businesses rely on to gauge employment trends, inflation, consumer spending, and overall growth. Some reports may never be released, however, with the White House confirming that employment and Consumer Price Index data for October will likely be lost.

Economists estimate the shutdown reduced GDP growth by more than one-tenth of a percentage point for each of the six weeks the government was closed, though much of that lost output is expected to be recovered in the coming months.