It’s time to end the government shutdown
It’s time to end the government shutdown
Congressman Tom Cole was right: government shutdowns don’t work.
The result of a never-ending political feud between Republicans and Democrats, shutdowns, Cole said, are inappropriate, costly, and an ineffective political tactic that hurt the American public, essential workers and the rest of the country.
To be sure, Cole is blaming Democrats. Cole, the chairman of the powerful House Appropriations and Budget committee, said Democrats are responsible for the current shutdown. Democrats have countered that health care is vital and Republicans need to change their position or the shutdown will continue.
In the meantime, Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits have been axed and thousands of government employees have been furloughed.
Here in Oklahoma, last week the Department of Human Services announced that it would furlough 2,300 employees at the same time funds for supplemental nutritional benefits were stopped.
That means approximately 680,000 Oklahomans won’t have SNAP benefits – meaning they will have difficulty buying food. Put another way, more than 15% of the state’s population has trouble getting enough food for dinner.
And still, the federal government and the services it provides has stalled.
Cole would argue this shutdown — and previous ones like it — causes damage by disrupting services, creates uncertainty for federal employees who may not be paid. According to history, government shutdowns rarely achieve their objectives.
I understand there are issues and policies that need to be examined and that both sides need to listen. For their part, Democrats need to acknowledge they don’t have all the answers and they need to hear what spending policies the GOP is serious about.
And Republicans, who control the House, Senate and the White House, need to realize that not every idea they have is a great one and they, too, need to be open-minded.
What both sides need to realize is that government shutdowns affect real people.
Those shutdowns disrupt lives, cause people to lose their jobs and make Americans more fearful and far less trusting of their government.
That’s not how American democracy is supposed to work.
It’s time for the federal shutdown to end. It’s time for lawmakers on both sides to come together and solve problems. Cole was right: shutdowns don’t work.
Don’t believe Cole? Then go talk to your neighbor who now, because SNAP benefits are no more, can’t afford to buy that extra loaf of bread.
M. Scott Carter is an award-winning political and investigative reporter covering federal and state government and politics in Oklahoma.