A vote to end the government shutdown hours after it began failed Wednesday, as Democrats in the Senate held firm to the party’s demands to fund health care subsidies that President Donald Trump and Republicans refuse to provide.

The tally showed cracks in the Democrats' resolve but offered no breakthrough. Blame was being cast on all sides on the first day of the shutdown. The White House and Congress failed to strike an agreement to keep programs and services open, throwing the country into a new cycle of uncertainty.

Roughly 750,000 federal workers were expected to be furloughed, with some potentially fired by Trump's Republican administration. Many offices will be shuttered, perhaps permanently, as the president vows to "do things that are irreversible" to punish Democrats.

Trump's deportation agenda is expected to run full speed ahead, while education, environmental and other services sputter. The economic fallout is expected to ripple nationwide.