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US Government Shutdown

Posted: Fri Jan 19, 2018 6:17 pm
by Randomizer
As the hours count down to another government shutdown, Republicans in control of Congress and the presidency are trying to blame Democrats for not wanting to support the Republican version of kick the can down the road. The Republicans want bipartisanship only when they can't get their way on their own.

Thoughts?

Re: US Government Shutdown

Posted: Fri Jan 19, 2018 6:18 pm
by Randomizer
Any non-essential government workers out there that are going to be told to go home?

Re: US Government Shutdown

Posted: Fri Jan 19, 2018 6:27 pm
by yavuzovic
Can you post any link?

Re: US Government Shutdown

Posted: Fri Jan 19, 2018 6:41 pm
by Randomizer

Re: US Government Shutdown

Posted: Fri Jan 19, 2018 6:47 pm
by ND
Looks like Chuck Schumer and the Senate Democrats are going to force this and cause a shutdown. They are literally getting everything they want in the CR bill except DACA. DACA will be negotiated at a separate time.

HOWEVER, instead of funding the government, and providing pay for military and government families they are going to shut the government down until they get their way and get amnesty for 800k illegal aliens that shouldn't be in this country to begin with. How anti-American is that?

The Democratic Party and Chuck Schumer should be ashamed of themselves. This is sicko-tier stuff.

Re: US Government Shutdown

Posted: Fri Jan 19, 2018 6:51 pm
by Jeff Kuta
Maybe if GOP sickos had used regular order for the tax bill, this wouldn't be happening.

GOP House. GOP Senate. GOP Potus. Can't get anything done. Sad.

Re: US Government Shutdown

Posted: Fri Jan 19, 2018 6:57 pm
by ND
The GOP passed a tax bill which is causing dramatic growth in the economy, more money in people's pockets, businesses are giving raises, re-investing, stock options, etc (see Apple ALONE from yesterday).

Now, I am not sure if you know this or not @JEFF but the Senate requires 60 votes and the Republicans have 51. So, that means 9 Democrats can hold up this CR bill if they want and they are. Schumer is going to shut it down because he can force the issue and he is forcing it. What a sicko human being.

Re: US Government Shutdown

Posted: Fri Jan 19, 2018 7:01 pm
by ND
I mean, why should American CITIZENS hurt and suffer because the Democratic Party wants to shut the government down to give amnesty to 800k or a million illegal aliens that shouldn't even be in this country. It's straight up madness, insanity, nuts.

Re: US Government Shutdown

Posted: Fri Jan 19, 2018 7:07 pm
by Ezio
lol

Re: US Government Shutdown

Posted: Fri Jan 19, 2018 7:32 pm
by ND
Yeah laugh at the fact that millions of folks are going to suffer so Chuck Schumer is going to push a political point and fight for a million illegal aliens. Geez, what's wrong with people?

Re: US Government Shutdown

Posted: Fri Jan 19, 2018 7:57 pm
by Ezio
I'm just laughing at you ND. Not at any policy.

Re: US Government Shutdown

Posted: Fri Jan 19, 2018 8:10 pm
by ND
okay, well I think more people should laugh at people like you. People who ridicule other's for standing up for American's.

Re: US Government Shutdown

Posted: Fri Jan 19, 2018 8:36 pm
by Ogion
Are you American, ND? You sort of look like you're plugging for the Russian plant.

The tax giveaway bill has had precisely zero impact on the economy, because it hasn't come into force yet. Sure, a couple of corportations have announced gimmicks, but if you think any large corporation makes decisions involving billions of dollars on a three week timeline since the bill was signed, you really don' tunderstand how things work. yes, the Obama economy is ticking along nicely, and suprisingly, Trump hasn't killed it yet, largely because he is so damn ineffective.

In any event, I'd think essential personnel get paid and keep working, which makes me wonder why the military gets paid in this case?

Re: US Government Shutdown

Posted: Fri Jan 19, 2018 8:47 pm
by Foxcastle
Shutdowns are a joke, and so many government operations are exempted that it's more of an inconvenience for most people. Family vacations to National Parks are ruined... Tres tragique! Social Security checks will still go out. Medicare still gets processed. Air Traffic Control and TSA still keep airports running. Millions of federal employees get backpay after it's over. This makes it a political football, and some politicians (not most, but enough) see it as an opportunity to score political points. Because it isn't so bad—billions of dollars in economic damage aside—and they're willing to risk it to score political points.

Shutdowns should hurt. Shutdowns should be bad enough that no politician wants to put themselves in that position. Social Security checks shouldn't go out, Medicare payments shouldn't be processed, air travel should halt, and federal employees shouldn't get back pay. The only federal operation that should be essential is the military/national security apparatus, the courts and agency enforcement of law/regulations under their purview.

NB: The shutdown only affects agencies that are directly funded by Congress. So things like Air Traffic Control, the US Postal Service, and several other agencies are not subject to the shutdown because their revenues aren't appropriated by Congress. ATC is paid for by fees on airline tickets, and USPS runs on revenue from stamps, for example. Medicare, Social Security, and other mandatory spending are on autopilot, so are also not subject to appropriations. So the legal reasoning is weak, but I still think that if shutdowns actually caused more problems than inconvenience (which is offset by how much people like political drama), they'd be much rarer.

Re: US Government Shutdown

Posted: Fri Jan 19, 2018 8:50 pm
by Foxcastle
Ogion wrote:
Fri Jan 19, 2018 8:36 pm
In any event, I'd think essential personnel get paid and keep working, which makes me wonder why the military gets paid in this case?
Nope, military doesn't get paid until after the shutdown. They're deemed "essential" so they have to continue to work, and that means that they will be paid for that time when the shutdown ends, but they better hope today is payday, because they won't get paid until after the shutdown.

Re: US Government Shutdown

Posted: Fri Jan 19, 2018 9:38 pm
by Octavious
The very fact that this ridiculous way of (for want of a better word) running things has been allowed to continue by both Republican and Democrat governments shows that both sides are unfit to rule. There are times that America is truly a global laughing stock.

Re: US Government Shutdown

Posted: Fri Jan 19, 2018 10:15 pm
by Jeff Kuta
Trump and Republicans with yet another self-inflicted wound.

I look forward to the shutdown, if only so that Trump cannot end his first full year as POTUS with a functioning government.

Happy Anniversary to trump and his honeybunch ho.

Re: US Government Shutdown

Posted: Fri Jan 19, 2018 10:49 pm
by Ogion
There are only "times" when America is a global laughingstock? That's reassuring.

Of course, it isn't a matter of it being "allowed" to continue, but rather than the system is designed to require some level of cooperation to function. Of course, with the Republicans deciding they were going to do everything possible to obstruct rather than cooperate since the mid 1990s, the approach to being a "loyal opposition" was lost and now Democrats would be idiots not to follow suit. The predictable result is that the minority party can extract concessions for simply not blowing up a functioning government.

Re: US Government Shutdown

Posted: Fri Jan 19, 2018 10:52 pm
by Ogion
I'll point out, this is the first time Democrats have been in the role of withdrawing votes to force a shutdown. The big ones in 1995 and 2013 resulted from GOP hostage taking.

Re: US Government Shutdown

Posted: Fri Jan 19, 2018 11:05 pm
by Randomizer
There are several Republicans voting against it for different reasons including sticking it to Trump so it's not like it could pass on a straight majority vote. The House version had Republicans voting against it and some Democrats for it.

Democrats have offered their own version to avoid a shutdown.