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Shutdowns have become a recurring feature of US politics – but the current situation appears especially difficult to resolve due to political dynamics and bad blood among the two parties.

Some government services are temporarily suspended, and about 750,000 people likely to be placed on furlough without pay as both political parties can't agree regarding budget legislation.

Legislative attempts to resolve the deadlock continue to fall short, with little visibility on a clear resolution path this time because each side – as well as the President – perceive advantages in maintaining their positions.

Here are the four ways that make things feel different currently.

First, For Democrats, it's about Trump – not just healthcare

Democratic supporters has been demanding over recent periods for their representatives adopt stronger opposition against the Trump administration. Currently the party leadership has a chance to demonstrate their responsiveness.

Earlier this year, the Senate's top Democrat was fiercely criticised for helping pass GOP budget legislation thus preventing a government closure early this year. Now he's holding firm.

This presents an opportunity for the Democratic party to demonstrate they can take back some control from a presidency pursuing its agenda assertively with determined action.

Opposing the GOP budget proposal carries electoral dangers that the wider public may become impatient with prolonged negotiations and consequences begin to mount.

Democratic representatives are leveraging the shutdown fight to put a spotlight on expiring health insurance subsidies and GOP-backed federal health program reductions for the poor, both facing public opposition.

Additionally, they're attempting to restrict executive utilization of presidential authority to cancel or delay funding approved by Congress, which he has done with foreign aid and various federal programs.

Second, For Republicans, they see potential

The administration leader along with a senior aide have openly indicated of the fact that they perceive an opening to make more of reductions in government employment implemented during the current presidential term so far.

The nation's leader personally stated recently that the government closure provided him with an "unprecedented opportunity", adding he intended to cut "opposition-supported departments".

Administration officials said it would be left with a "challenging responsibility" of mass lay-offs to keep essential government services operating if the shutdown continued. The Press Secretary said this was just "fiscal sanity".

The scope of the potential lay-offs is still uncertain, though administration officials have been consulting with the Office of Management and Budget, or OMB, under the leadership of the key official.

The administration's financial chief has previously declared the suspension of federal funding for Democratic-run parts of the country, such as NYC and Illinois' largest city.

3. There's little trust between both parties

While previous shutdowns have been characterised by extended negotiations among political opponents aimed at restoring government services running again, currently there seems minimal cooperative willingness of collaboration this time.

Instead, there is rancour. Political tensions continued over the weekend, as both sides exchanging accusations for causing the impasse.

The legislative leader a Republican, accused Democrats with insufficient commitment toward resolution, and maintaining positions over a deal "to get political cover".

Simultaneously, the opposition's chief made similar charges against their counterparts, stating how a majority party commitment regarding health funding talks after operations resume can not be taken seriously.

The administration leader personally has inflamed the situation by posting a computer-created controversial depiction of the Senate leader and the top Democrat opposition figure, in which the legislator appears wearing traditional headwear and facial hair.

The affected legislator with party colleagues called this racist, a characterization rejected by the Vice-President.

4. The US economy is fragile

Experts project approximately two-fifths of government employees – over 800,000 workers – to be put on unpaid leave due to the shutdown.

This will reduce consumer expenditure – with broader economic consequences, as environmental permitting, delayed intellectual property processing, payments to contractors along with various forms of government activity tied to business comes to a halt.

A shutdown also injects fresh instability within economic systems already being roiled from multiple factors including tariffs, previous budget reductions, enforcement actions and artificial intelligence.

Analysts estimate potential reduction of as much as 0.2 percentage points off US economic growth for each week it lasts.

But the economy typically recoups the majority of interrupted operations following resolution, similar to recovery patterns after major environmental events.

That could be one reason why financial markets has appeared largely unfazed to the ongoing impasse.

Conversely, analysts say that if the President carries out his threat of mass firings, the damage could be more long-lasting.