Episode 888: The First Shutdown

By Ailsa Chang,

Sarah Gonzalez, Sarah Gonzalez

Published January 16, 2019 at 4:49 PM PST

An undated portrait by Mathew Brady of Rutherford B. Hayes, 19th President of the United States.

The government is shut down again. Here at Planet Money, we wondered: just how long has this been going on? The answer is: It started a long time ago, but then it didn't happen again for nearly a hundred years.

Today on the show, we go back in time to 1879. There was a fight between President Rutherford B. Hayes and Congress about African-Americans voting. It ended in the first ever government shutdown.

Music: "Hakoniwa," "Salmon Smash" and "Broke Me."

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Ailsa Chang

Ailsa Chang is an award-winning journalist who hosts All Things Considered along with Ari Shapiro, Audie Cornish, and Mary Louise Kelly. She landed in public radio after practicing law for a few years.

See stories by Ailsa Chang

Sarah Gonzalez

Sarah Gonzalez is a host and reporter with Planet Money, NPR's award-winning podcast that finds creative, entertaining ways to make sense of the big, complicated forces that move our economy. She joined the team in April 2018.

Sarah Gonzalez

See stories by Sarah Gonzalez