Refernce to Economic Times.The US government shutdown is almost crossing the record of a long period of time that has no prospect of ending. The situation in Washington is getting heated with both parties adamant to compromise and leave millions of federal employees, vital services and the US economy in limbo.
Political Deadlock Deepens
The closure, which has been ongoing since October 1, is now near to be the longest in the history of the US perhaps overtaking the 35-day standoff during the first term of former President Donald Trump.
The Trump administration has been taking the freedom of the shutdown to strengthen programs it advocates as it tries to tear down those it is against. In the meantime, Democrats want any new funding package to come with safeguards to millions of Americans at risk of being deprived of their health insurance coverage or massive premium increases.
Each group is not moving and it is unlikely that a solution can be reached in the nearest future.
Furloughs, Firing and Financial Stress.
By the end of March 31, the federal government had close to 2.3 million civilian employees. Congressional Budget Office (CBO) estimated that about 750,000 employees daily are being furloughed throughout the shut down. These employees will be required to remain at home without pay till the government opens and the others who are considered essential will be allowed to work without direct payment.
Despite the fact that both groups will eventually get retroactive compensation, most of them will miss paychecks in this month, which puts them in severe financial distress.
The administration redistributed Pentagon funds to make sure that 1.3 million active-duty service members collected their paychecks with temporary paychecks, although it remains unclear whether or not their paychecks will be made after that.
To taxpayers, the daily payroll bill of the non-working workers on furlough amounts to approximately 400 million dollar estimated by the CBO at the request of the Senator Joni Ernst of Iowa.
Mass Layoffs and Judicial backlash.
Trump administration has started firing thousands of federal workers in agencies that do not correspond to its priorities in a controversial move. There was one new cut of 4,100 employees, primarily in the Departments of Treasury, Health and Human Services, Education, and Housing and Urban Development.
According to the budget chief of the white house, Russ Vought the total number of layoffs might reach well above 10,000 stating that the administration will be striving to close down unnecessary bureaucracy. Nevertheless, federal judge has put the firings on hold due to concern of political reasons and due process.
Nonetheless, the white house is still assured that the plan will pass through court.
Stress to Federal Workers and Communities.
Lawmakers recognize that a large number of federal employees survive on a paycheck to paycheck basis therefore the shutdown was particularly excruciating. Food banks in the country in their turn have increased their efforts in order to take care of impacted employees.
As an instance, the Capital area food bank in Washington, D.C. intends to schedule more food distributions to federal workers and contractors starting Monday.
This increasing community backing brings out the profound personal and social cost of the current crisis.
Economic Impact Across Sectors
Traditionally, government shutdowns lead to a temporary decline in the economic growth in the quarter in question and a slight recovery afterwards when governmental activities go back to normal.
Nevertheless, this further lockdown may have enormous and long-term effects.
Oxford Economics suggests that the shutdown lowers the US GDP growth by 0.1 to 0.2 percentage points per week. The impact of a complete quarter shutdown on growth may be up to 2.4 percentage point, which is a big blow to the economy.
Some of the industries are bearing the brunt more than others.
According to the US Travel Association, the losses of the cancelled trips to the national parks, historic places, and open museums like the Smithsonian and the National Zoo cost the US billions per week.
The Small Business Administration has also scaled new lending of about 860 million dollars worth a week and this touches on 1,600 small businesses.
In the meantime, a freeze in the renewal of flood insurance policies has put real estate dealings in the country on hold.
There were also shortages in air traffic controllers in major hubs such as Boston, Philadelphia, Atlanta and Houston, which were reported by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), which contributed to delays in Dallas, Newark and Nashville airports.
Political Fallout and social impression.
When it comes to shutting down, the party which is imposing requirements on reopening government has hardly made it. It seems that the same dynamic can be observed these days.
According to a survey conducted by the AP-NORC Center of Public Affairs Research, the polls indicate that 6 of every ten Americans blame Trump and congressional republicans, with 54 percent also blaming Democrats.
The politics involved are massive. The administration has already frozen 18 billion of a new rail tunnel underneath the Hudson River and cancelled 7.6 billion clean energy grants many to Democratic leaning states. Although the moves are not connected to the shutdown, critics have claimed that that is the case.
No Clear Path to Resolution
The shutdown has no repeat of compromising and is thus paralyzing Washington as neither party is ready to compromise.
John Thune, the majority leader in the senate, indicated that no negotiation would be made under hostage conditions by the republicans. Conversely, House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries confirmed that the Democrats would not bend or break as they were fighting on behalf of the American people.
The US government shutdown will continue to put a strain on the workers, hamper the economy, and challenge the political stamina of the country until a breakthrough is made.
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