Posted on 12/05/2017 1:03:02 PM PST by mdittmar
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A government shutdown is never good for anybody. The last time Congress shut down the government for 16 days in 2013, it cost the economy $24 billion and 120,000 jobs in the private sector. There were also a few misconceptions out there about the shutdown and government employees. Before people start coming up with alternative facts again this time around, we want to set a few things straight.
1. Federal employees want to go to work
Federal employees believe in their mission and want to provide quality services to the American people. But during the 2013 shutdown, about 850,000 federal employees were locked out of work and were prohibited even from checking their emails or phones. These furloughed employees did not get paid during the shutdown. Those deemed essential were required to go to work but did not get paid either. They eventually received retroactive pay, but late paychecks hurt their families. Many employees almost went bankrupt, which could affect their employment. Members of Congress, on the other hand, continued to receive a paycheck during the shutdown.
2. Politicians are wasting our tax dollars when they lock out employees
Because 850,000 employees were locked out of work for 16 days, the country suffered a massive productivity loss. Federal employees were furloughed for a combined total of 6.6 million days, and the Office of Management and Budget estimated the cost to be about $2.5 billion. But those estimates were conservative.
"It does not represent the total cost, because the other thing it does not cover is all the preparation leading up to and what happened post [shutdown]," then OMB Director Sylvia Mathews Burwell told reporters.
Indeed, experts agreed just considering a shutdown costs money since employees have to postpone other tasks to make shutdown plans.
3. Millions of Americans will suffer because federal employees cant work
During the last shutdown, millions of Americans suffered.
Hundreds of cancer patients couldnt enroll in National Institutes of Health clinical trials.
The FDA delayed nearly 500 food inspections.
The EPA halted inspections at 1,200 sites, including hazardous waste facilities, chemical facilities, and drinking water systems.
Veterans with disabilities didnt get their checks as employees couldnt be there to tackle the backlog of disability claims.
Almost $4 billion in tax refunds were delayed by up to two weeks.
Head Start programs serving 6,300 low-income kids were forced to shut their centers up to nine days.
The National Institutes of Standards and Technology (NIST) and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) were forced to furlough four out of the five Nobel Prize-winning researchers employed by the federal government.
And the list goes on.
Failing to fund the governments operations has real-world implications for everyone in this country. Congress needs to do what we elected them to do and pay their bills on time.
The American Federation of Government Employees(AFGE),just wants to let you know that it's not their fault;)
Here's an old song I like.
sweet irony and lol fodder
The Horror!
Dont believe these Lying Leftist Unions and Media outlets that proved themselves during the 2016 campaign to be operatives of the DNC and intentional liars. They are presumed to be lying and we should presume what they publish is a lie. The presumption can only be rebutted with the outlet providing clear and convincing evidence they are not lying.
The fact is 80% of the federal government (including national parks) are unconstitutional. At some point sooner than later, the 80% unconstitutional portion of the federal government must be shut down which means 80% of the federal officials, bureaucratic heads, and government workers need to be sent home packing without a job.
Shut it down, except for the military, medicare, and the SS checks....and leave open the federal court for Hildebeast’s trial.
Thanks for the facts - even more reason to shut it down!
If indeed shutting down the government is soooo detrimental then surely Chuck and Nancy would do anything to avoid it.....yeah, thats what I thought.
It’s all a show, they only “shut down” a small portion of the government, largely selected to be annoying to the citizens so they can blame the other party.
1. Federal employees want to go to work
Then get a job.
“But they have jobs!”
Not during the shutdown.
You know there will be shutdowns. Plan accordingly.
And a whole lotta people don’t think they should be compelled to pay for what you’re doing.
2. Politicians are wasting our tax dollars when they lock out employees
They’re TRYING to waste money during shutdowns. They WANT the shutdowns to be more expensive than not-shutdowns.
The shutdowns shouldn’t involve “back pay”.
When I get furloughed, I don’t get paid. That’s the point of a furlough.
3. Millions of Americans will suffer because federal employees cant work
Millions of Americans suffer because federal employees ARE working. Money is being spent on stupid & illegal $#!^ that we shouldn’t be compelled at implied gunpoint to pay for.
Yes, I see the immediate heartstring-yanking consequences. That’s the case because the system has been built to use human shields to protect itself.
Its all a show,if I want to go camping in a National Park,I go, shutdown or not,screw them.
A government shutdown is not good for anyone, except American citizens who don’t spend a whole lot of time caring about keeping government workers employed
I could never get away with stealth camping. I snore too loudly
Good one!
um...did they failed to mention that the fed employees didn’t lose any salary ?
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