After a 16-day shutdown, the United States government has finally reopened. This article provides a decent summary of the current political situation.
http://www.nytimes.com/2013/10/18/us/politics/government-reopens.html
For those who want a basic summary, last night the Republicans finally agreed to finance government until January 15 and raise the nation’s debt limit through the middle of February, minutes before the deadline would have expired. Following the Senate and the House, President Obama signed the temporary spending measure into law. Thus, this morning federal agencies and public facilities began to reopen for business. Many furloughed federal workers were very relieved to have their jobs back. Vice President Joe Biden is said to have welcomed the returning workers with muffins. Not all normal government operations have been resumed, though, and it is not clear when they will start up again. Politicians are already preparing for another confrontation over budget negotiations, because in truth this is only a temporary measure and the government needs to find a more permanent way to resolve these issues. In short, the government is functioning once again, but America needs to either find a true solution quickly or face another blow-up.
Keep in mind it was Republican minority that joined with the Democrats to get the bill to pass.
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