Congress takes a break in August, and those fine men and women return to Washington, they’ll have about two weeks to keep the federal government funded. Now, a lot can happen in two weeks, but in Washington, two weeks is barely enough time for one vote. Color us a bit concerned about another shutdown.
But, a shutdown doesn’t hurt anyone, does it?
That depends on who you ask.
Start with the folks — some of whom live right here in El Dorado — who work for the federal government. Those are the people who don’t get paid when the government closes its doors. Yeah, those folks get hurt quite a bit in the short term.
What about the military folks overseas? Well, sometimes members of Congress will try to finagle a way to pay them, and that’s a good thing, but it’s grandstanding to pay some federal employees and not others, even if some of them are carrying weapons on foreign soil.
Social Security recipients. They get their checks, right? Probably. The funding is still there, but there is the matter of getting those checks sent out (and delivered) or processing the claims for direct deposit.
Then there are the Americans who want or need services. Someone needs a passport. Someone else needs help with their mortgage. That family over there just had a tornado destroy their home. Where are the FEMA people when you need them? Oh, they’re part of the federal government, too.
Who doesn’t get hurt?
The politicians responsible for shutting down the government. The pundits will assess the situation and assign blame, but memories are fleeting. By the time the next election rolls around, a past shutdown will be a distant memory, if it is one at all.
What is this looming shutdown about?
Ostensibly it has to do with sequestration cuts that no one in Congress wants, boosts in defense spending that Republicans want and boosts in domestic spending that Democrats want. Of course, no one will talk about raising taxes for any of this new spending. So, they’ll have to look for programs to cut. Republicans will want to cut Medicare, Medicaid and welfare programs. Democrats will want to raise taxes or slow defense spending.
And that’s where the line gets drawn.
But you’ll hear much more about Planned Parenthood than you will those other programs. The ongoing brouhaha over Planned Parenthood is much better as a wedge issue and campaign fundraising tool than whether the new F-35 strike fighter can, you know, actually fight.
It won’t help the upcoming budget battle that several in the Senate are running for president. That fact will muddy the water because those folks will be as interested in keeping their profile high as they will be in getting anything done. They will have plenty to say no matter what is actually going on in regard to keeping the federal government’s lights on. Sens. Rand Paul, Marco Rubio and Ted Cruz likely will have plenty to say in the next few weeks. Lots of heat. Not much illumination, at least on this subject.
There was a time when Congress used budget discussions to chart a course for the nation. Spending reflected our nation’s priorities, and the final numbers mirrored the concessions each side was willing to make. No, we’re serious. That’s how it used to work.
Now, Congress argues about the budget in increments, kicking the can down the road as often as possible, without truly deciding much of anything. Both sides will stake out positions that the other can’t or won’t agree to, and then they’ll wear out their fingers pointing at the other guys.
It’s an embarrassing demonstration of grown people, elected by grown people, who can’t do anything we sent them there to do.
Our nation needs a functioning federal government that protects the homeland, maintains infrastructure and provides for domestic tranquility. At this point, ours isn’t scoring well on any of those.
Perhaps Congress will surprise us in September. That would be a welcome surprise.
We won’t be holding our breath, though.