Final answer:
Lawmakers struggled to reach a budget agreement due to budget disputes and policy disagreements involving spending priorities and the Affordable Health Care Act, leading to government shutdowns.
Step-by-step explanation:
When the government first shut down, lawmakers were having trouble reaching a budget agreement. The two main reasons that led to the government shutdown were budget disputes and policy disagreements, particularly regarding spending priorities and the Affordable Health Care Act, commonly known as Obamacare.
During the shutdowns, intense debates occurred over how to fund federal operations, with consequential impacts such as services closure and federal employees being furloughed.
When the government first shut down, lawmakers were having trouble reaching a budget agreement. The two main reasons that led to the government shutdown were budget disputes and policy disagreements. In 2013, Republicans and Democrats could not agree on which spending policies to fund and how large the government debt should be.
This led to a two-week shutdown of the federal government and got close to the deadline where the federal government would default on its Treasury bonds.