It’s nearly Christmas and the beginning of a new year, but in Washington, D.C., it wouldn’t be December without politicians arguing over a budget bill and threatening to shut down the government.
A week ago the world witnessed a scene from the Oval Office that can best be described as feral cats trying to scratch each others eyes out. President Trump hosted Democrat leaders Nancy Pelosi and Chuck Schumer for a meeting at the White House to discuss funding the government, but it quickly devolved from a stately gathering of our nation’s top lawmakers to something one might witness in the monkey enclosure of the Minnesota Zoo.
We don’t fault Sen. Schumer and Rep. Pelosi for correcting the record when President Trump makes false claims about illegal immigration or new portions of the border wall being built (no wall has been built since he took office), but did they have to appear as if they enjoyed it?
The president has said he will not sign a budget bill without $5 billion to begin construction of a border wall with Mexico. Democrats in Congress have offered $1.67 billion toward border security. Neither has shown a willingness to negotiate at this point, and so it appears the country may be heading toward a partial government shutdown early Saturday morning.
What would a shutdown look like? The good news for most people living in the Hutchinson area is that they may not notice a shutdown at all. Mail would still be delivered and airports would still be open for holiday travel.
Much of the government was already funded by a partial budget bill signed in September, but about 25 percent of the government still needs to be funded and includes important agencies and departments such as Homeland Security, Agriculture, Transportation, Commerce, Housing and Urban Development, Interior and Justice. If a shutdown comes to fruition, these departments and more would cease most of their operations and be reduced to only “essential” personnel.
While many would not feel directly the impact of a partial government shutdown, hundreds of thousands of government workers would be put on furlough, sent home without paychecks during the holiday season.
What’s more, in truly Dickensian fashion, hundreds of thousands of other government employees who are considered “expected” would have to remain on the job but wouldn’t receive paychecks until after the shutdown. This mostly includes law enforcement officers in agencies such as the FBI, Drug Enforcement Administration, Transportation Security Administration and, ironically, Border Patrol.
While the president tells us building a border wall is a matter of urgent national interest, many disagree. According to a recent NPR/PBS NewsHour/Marist poll, more than two-thirds (69 percent) do not believe building a border wall is an immediate priority for Congress, including half who do not believe it should be a priority at all.
Rather than a serious concern, the president’s determination to build a border wall feels to us more like an attempt at following through on a campaign promise, but only half a promise at that (we seem to recall chants that Mexico would pay for it).
We hope that the president and Congress are able to put aside their differences and find a compromise to complete their important duty of funding the government.
In lieu of a signed budget bill, please remember to be extra kind to the TSA agents you encounter if you have plans to travel over the holidays. They’ll be working without knowing when their next paycheck arrives.
