While the term “shutdown” may sound pretty daunting, they actually used to be a yearly occurrence. There have been a whopping 17 since 1976.
As a former legal advisor to the House of Representatives told NPR: “It was thought that Congress would soon get around to passing the spending bill and there was no point in raising a ruckus while waiting.”
In those years, the rest of government would go about business as usual while Congress bickered over spending. But that all changed when Jimmy Carter’s administration decided in a legal opinion that the government cannot function until Congress agrees to pay for it.
Ever since, it’s become a routine practice for both parties to try to force the president’s hand when it comes to the budget — leading to five shutdowns during Jimmy Carter’s administration...
By far the longest and most infamous shutdowns came when Bill Clinton was president — with the government shutting down twice in less than two months, the second of which lasted 21 days and sent 800,000 workers home without paychecks.
http://www.ktvu.com/news/news/national/government-shutdown-history-lesson/nbCWq/