The federal government shutdown has now passed 35 days, making this the longest shutdown in history. The most recent was during President Donald Trump’s previous term, and it lasted 34 days. In the midst of the shutdown, Trump has been making headlines with his rash and harsh decisions.
Sean Duffy, the U.S. Secretary of Transportation, warned the administration that he might have to close parts of national airspace due to the shortage of air traffic controllers, which has only been made worse as they have worked more than a month without pay. If the shutdown continues, this closure may happen next week. Thanksgiving Week, a peak travel period in the U.S., will come two weeks after that.
On Nov. 4, Trump threatened to deny food stamps to around 42 million low-income Americans until the end of the shutdown. This would defy a federal court’s ruling for the Trump administration to continue partial aid payments through November, according to an article by the New York Times.
Trump posted on his social media platform, Truth Social, that the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program “will be given only when the Radical Left Democrats open up government, which they can easily do, and not before!”
The Trump administration and Congressional Republicans have frequently blamed the government shutdown on the Democratic Party.
“The Democrats’ obstructionism will break the record for the longest government shutdown in American history tonight,” Karoline Leavitt, the White House press secretary, said at a news conference. “The Democrats are intentionally hurting American families, workers and businesses with this shutdown.”
During his 60 Minutes interview with Norah O’Donnell, Trump continued this mindset when asked about the government shutdown approaching the longest in history.
“Democrats’ fault,” Trump said. “Well, what we’re doing is, we keep voting. I mean, the Republicans are voting almost unanimously to end it, and the Democrats keep voting against ending it.”
Despite this, a poll conducted by the Washington Post show that many Americans blame Republicans and the current administration for the shutdown. 45% of Americans place the blame on Republicans, and only 33% blame the Democrats.
The lack of accountability taken by this administration deeply hurts the American people that this shutdown is affecting the most. Threatening to rip away food stamps from over 42 million people shows a total lack of support and effort from someone elected to help and lead.
According the Bipartisan Policy Center, if the shutdown continues through Dec. 1, over 4.5 million paychecks will be withheld from federal employees.
However, Congress – those responsible for ending the shutdown – continue to receive pay as it drudges on.
This record-breaking shutdown has become more than a partisan dispute; it has become a crisis of a government that doesn’t seem to have a conscious and has weaponized the well-being of its citizens.
For many across the country, the Nov. 4 election has brought hope as Democrats gained some ground in local and state offices.
Still, unfortunately, this doesn’t affect the government shutdown, which falls in the hands of an administration that doesn’t even want to provide mandated back pay to many federal workers. Trump told reporters at the White House, “Some people that really don’t deserve to be taken care of, and we’ll take care of them in a different way.”
The question is no longer who to blame for the shutdown, but how long the American people will tolerate that uses its own vulnerable citizens as leverage. The solution is clear: open the government, fund essential services and stop holding the American people as hostages.
Andrea Roberts can be reached at [email protected].
Dennis Whitehead
Excellent article! Donald Trump is responsible for the shutdown, as the republicans control all three branches of government, and the buck stops with Trump.