All over a border wall.
Things will only get worst by the week.
In theory, the government could be shutdown for a very long time, but not more than a year. You would think there would be something in the Constitution to keep this from happening, but no. At least nothing that I'm aware of. Maybe the Supreme Court could step in? No.
Any way you look at it, Congress needs to end a government shutdown. Not the President, not the Supreme Court. Shutdowns of the type experienced by the United States are nearly impossible in other forms of government.
"Under the separation of powers created by the United States Constitution, the United States Congress has the sole power of the purse and responsibility for appropriating government funds. Like other bills, appropriations must be passed by both the House of Representatives and the Senate. Upon passage of a final version by both houses, they go to the President of the United States. If the President signs the bills, they become law. If instead the President vetoes them, they go back to Congress, where the veto can (in rare instances) be overridden by a two-thirds vote of both houses."
"Government shutdowns tend to occur when the President and one or both of the chambers of Congress are unable to resolve disagreements over budget allocations before the existing budget cycle ends."
"The Antideficiency Act, is legislation enacted by the United States Congress to prevent the incurring of obligations or the making of expenditures (outlays) in excess of amounts available in appropriations or funds. The law was initially enacted in 1884. The ADA prohibits the federal government of the United States from entering into a contract that is not 'fully funded' because doing so would obligate the government in the absence of an appropriation adequate to the needs of the contract."