Like so many issues in the United States these days, the partial shutdown of the federal government – now the longest in U.S. history – is viewed very differently by people in different partisan and ideological camps. In a new Pew Research Center survey, about six-in-ten U.S. adults (58%) call the shutdown a “very serious problem.” But Democrats and Democratic-leaning independents are far more likely than Republicans and Republican leaners to say this (79% vs. 35%). …
All told, there have been 15 government shutdowns since 1980, when a change of legal interpretation began requiring federal agencies to cease regular functions when temporary funding gaps occurred. Most such shutdowns lasted only a few days at most, but some have been lengthy enough to cause major disruptions in government operations.
Here’s a look at public opinions about some of the more significant prior shutdowns, gathered from an archive of polling data maintained by the Roper Center for Public Opinion Research at Cornell University. CONT.
Drew DeSilver, Pew