As of midnight last night, the government of the United States of America is shut down.
The longest shutdown was 35 days in 2018 and 2019 during the first Donald Trump administration, but these are very rare and alarming political times unlike anything the nation has perhaps ever seen before – so, in this case, it’s easy to imagine this shut down setting a new record and then some.
While Piedmont Triad International Airport activities and many government operations will continue, the effects of the shutdown will directly affect some in the Triad. Federal employees across Guilford County face the prospect of missed paychecks. That includes not just many airport workers, but also staff at agencies such as the US Department of Agriculture offices in Greensboro, the Internal Revenue Service and the Department of Housing and Urban Development.
Beyond paychecks, certain federal programs also take a hit during a shutdown. Some nutrition programs – like WIC (Women, Infants and Children) – can experience interruptions. New housing vouchers may be delayed. Passport and visa processing – which rely on partially funded federal offices – can slow down significantly.
Also, court cases in federal courts like the District Court in downtown Greensboro may be postponed if staff is furloughed. Even basic customer service functions at agencies such as the Social Security Administration and Medicare call centers are pared down, though the benefits themselves continue to flow.
Nationally, parks and monuments frequently close their gates during shutdowns – or they stay open without adequate staffing, which can mean that trash piles up and visitor services disappear. The Trump administration has already fired many parks workers so the remaining ones are stretched thin as it is.
Museums on the National Mall in Washington, DC often shut down completely. So, for many in Greensboro and Guilford County planning fall trips, those closures can turn vacations into staycations or into a change of plans.
While PTI officials announced that airport operations are continuing as usual, in the previous lengthy shutdown airports in New York and Miami saw massive security delays – and at least one terminal had to close temporarily due to staffing shortages. Air traffic controllers warned of rising risks as they worked long hours without pay. As anyone who watches the news knows, there were already all kinds of existing problems with air travel when the government was open.
It’s also worth noting that shutdowns don’t just amount to political drama in Washington – they have real costs. Economists estimated that the 2018-2019 shutdown cut billions from U.S. economic output, much of which was never regained.
Lost productivity from furloughed workers, canceled contracts and delayed spending can add up. Cities like Greensboro and High Point feel an impact when federal workers pull back on spending, when contractors hit pause on projects or when grants for infrastructure improvements are pushed down the road.
Yep, the usual cluster from elected politicians. Hope there is no approval for free health care benefits for illegals which is a demand from democrats according to the TV news reports. Guess many in DC think it’s ok for the rest of society to suffer and put up with the BS.
Wake me when it’s over. Schumer and the radical Democrats forced a government shutdown over healthcare for illegals.
More propaganda and lies from the right. Not shocked.
Conservatives want let the ADA health insurance premiums jump to unaffordable levels for millions of Americans as if they haven’t already jeopardized healthcare for millions of Americans but cutting Medicaid so they put rural hospitals at risk and cut access for millions of Americans. But hey, the richest Americans are getting perminate tax breaks while a few working class people get a little tax break for a couple of years.
The country has been Chuck’d by Schumer. It is simply reverting to pre-COVID and Autopilot levels for Obamacare subsidies.
No one with serious health issues goes to rural hospitals. They don’t have qualified staff. They primarily treat symptoms of the flu and cold.
Biden allowed people making $200k per year to get subsidies.
You clearly don’t live in a rural community. My father provided outreach clinic services as an MD for years before he retired. He would strongly disagree with your assumption.
You will have to provide a source for your statement that Biden gave subsides for people making 200k per year. I suspect you are wrong on this assumption (I doubt you have a credible source) as the standard for individuals was a fixed cap of 400% of the federal poverty level…which is around 60k per year income cap for receiving a subsidy. This will now expire leaving many to have to make a tough choice of having access to healthcare or paying their bills. Note that the annual premium averages around $7k based on the national average.
But you be you
ditto. give’em el !
If a republican leader said it democrats, the safe assumption is that it is a lie.
Chris you are soooo full of yourself I just watched 3 democrats last night publicity state the the Republicans shut down the government to avoid paying for healthcare for ILLEGALS and the democrats want to keep giving the money for the ILLEGALS healthcare I told you over a month ago that ILLEGALS received taxpayer aid ILLEGALLY. This is not propaganda or lies. You are a moron. Stay strong President
Donald J Trump
I understand your ignorance on the subject as the conservative propaganda is well organized.
The loser in Trumps attack on this subject is hospitals. The law is clear that ANYONE who shows up to a hospital ER is to be provided care. (Doctors take an oath that actually means something to them) Trump’s plan is to stop providing funding to cover the hospitals cost of providing this care. So only the hospitals are hurt by this change. Not undocumented immigrants.
Do you really think hospitals will turn away the sick or the hurt to lay in the street and suffer? Would you approve of such action? And Austin Morris calls democrats evil. I think he is wrong, it looks by this example that conservatives are evil. Just more conservative projection.
But you be you.
So then by using your logic the true solution for hospitals would be to remove all the
“Undocumented “ (ILLEGALS) from the USA
No. removing all undocumented workers from the US is very expensive, reduces a very productive workforce and reduces US income tax revenues while increasing spending. Better to close the asylum loophole at the border, offer a path to citizenship for productive undocumented workers and implement a single payer healthcare solution that provide preventative care to all people which would lower the cost of healthcare in the US.
THAT is what democrats believe.
——————
Is this a joke? It reads like an article the News & Record might print. “These are… very alarming political times” !
“The government of the United States of America is shut down” !! I’m grasping my pearls.
Er, no, a lot of public sector employees get furloughed for a while and when they return to work they get the back pay for when they didn’t work. So it’s a paid vacation. Where do I apply for that deal?
To be fair, the article does admit that everything carries on as normal except for some minor inconveniences to some people. Oh well…. who cares? The Public Sector is much too insulated from economic reality anyway, so it’s good they get an occasional reality check.
I won’t lose much sleep over a few museums being closed.
Seems like the right-wing mentality of ‘if it doesn’t impact or benefit me, who cares’. It is the driving mentality behind America First quickly becoming America Alone strategy.
Not shocked.
————
Oh no, you have it wrong Chrissy.
I absolutely WANT the government shutdown deal. I want to have a few weeks off work, relax, drink beer, visit my son – and then get paid for it all, just like I put in my customary 50 hours/week.
But in The Productive Sector that’s simply not realistic. Only The Parasitic Sector lives an existence that is totally insulated from economic reality. We have to work to pay their wages – whether they earned them or not.
Thank you for proving my point. You would be happy for working class people to lose income and not be able to pay rent or mortgage just because our President fails to lead and would rather post hateful memes than actually engage and work with people who don’t agree with his point of view. The selfishness and callousness is strong on the right.
There is a reason that almost half of all government shut down days have occurred under his leadership. He is a weak leader as he has no feelings about hurting Americans to protect his frail ego.
———-
Wrong…. wrong… wrong… wrong… and wrong.
Well done! It takes special idiocy to be so wrong.
But then, you are our Village Idiot, aren’t you?
————-
PS
I AM “working class people”. All my family worked down the coal pits of South Wales or in the associated steel works. We started to do better when my grandfather had to pulled out of the pit because the coal dust was affecting him so severely. So he started his own coal merchants business, delivering coal to homes, and we all followed in his footsteps by working for ourselves.
Capitalism – and our own industry – raised us out of poverty. None of us were given money, or were born into wealth.
More childish name calling from Austin (or what ever his name is). Yawn.
———-
You’re wrong about everything buddy – which is why you’ve earned the sobriquet “Village Idiot”.
Coal. Not shocked your family was invested in a failing industry that poisoned our climate. Makes sense why you are a climate change denier. Yet another example of you using your emotions evaluate the world versus logic and reason.
Best wishes.
——–
That Comment – Oct 4 @ 7:59pm – is one of the nastiest, most spiteful and most ignorant comments ever published in these columns.
Coal kept millions of people from freezing, and millions in gainful employment – even if it was backbreaking, dirty, soul destroying work. My grandfathers, and their grandfathers knew what REAL hard work was, and it often put them in an early grave from Black Lung disease, including Uncle Ralph.
You, Chris, are a despicable and unspeakably vile human being. And breathtakingly ignorant in your opinions.
Just noting that your family having to suffer through the (rightful) decline of coal adds up for you being a climate change denier as you must have strong emotions behind coal’s failure which opened you to lies and propaganda regarding climate change given how mature the science on the subject actually is in today time.
Best wishes.
——–
Wrong again.
But that’s what happens when you just spew speculation and fantasies.
yup good arguments
especially one downtown that hinders downtown vitality ?
replying to austin m’z downtown museum comment
Washington is a big Tar Baby.
finished ‘brave new world’ ! your suggestion ?
Haven’t read it. Try “The Creature from Jekyll Island” by Edward Griffin. 600 pages about the Federal Reserve. (Get out of paper assets).
wonder what % of educated/educating people know what this means & where it came from ?
Mebbe a few. Disney’s “Song of the South” has virtually disappeared.
Probably won’t feel a thing from my place.
Leave it closed & refund out tax dollars.
Use the liberal tears & hot air to compensate for “global warming.”
We could fire half of the federal parasitic sector and none of us would notice
Can we get Guilford county gov to shut down also to stop Skippy from stealing our money
————-
Thank you Leaco for using the precisely correct terminology in economic terms : The Parasitic Sector.
And we in the Private Sector are more correctly referred to as : The Productive Sector.
People employed in the Parasitic Sector seem to resent these terms, first coined by the renowned economist Friedrich Hayek.
I guess the truth stings.
Great idea!
It’s interesting that you note ‘none of us would notice”…..that is the lie libertarians like to tell.
Truth is many Americans would feel the effect of the level of cuts Trump wants to make to ‘Democrat Programs’ not to mention an extended governmental shutdown. The thing with Libertarians is that they don’t care about people who DO benefit from government programs such as Vets, Disabled, Low-income, Elderly, etc… Libertarians also don’t care about things like the environment, public health, and federal land that are protected by these Federal ‘services’. I am beginning to see Conservatives (including Libertarians) as selfish as they only seem to complain about government spending that doesn’t benefit them personally as they view taxes as some pay for services for only themselves. Contributing to spending for the broader community doesn’t seem palatable for conservatives any longer.
The other habit of conservatives you don’t see in democrats of late is the idea that if something isn’t working, just kill it. Like public education. Public education is clearly broken as most states and the federal government have been cutting spending on public education for decades. Yes, public education cost more than private schools. This is largely due to the fact that public schools are required to educate everyone where private schools only have to educate those that can afford private transportation, new schoolbooks and supplies every year, and are healthy and have some minimum standard of capability in learning within a set standard. Libertarians and conservatives want private sector to ‘fill the void’ of public services…but under capitalism, private industry only provide services where profitable. So low income, disabled, and learning-disabled kids would not ‘fit’ their current model of profitable.
I believe the government should support ALL of the community. We all benefit from a healthy, safe and growing community even if we don’t personally benefit from every governmental program.
But you be you.
This is a perfect time to examine the need for so many federal workers and our dependence on the federal government. Payroll taxes will continue to roll in, tariffs will continue to roll in, and the private sector will continue to work.
tariffs collected then go where ?
No nothing for illegals. Shutdown won’t affect me one bit
The Noise and Broken Record and Noose 2 will follow their compatriots in attempting to spin this as being not only the fault of the Republicans, but also that it will have a detrimental effect on the healthcare for millions. That is true. Millions of Illegals who otherwise are not eligible for healthcare benefits under US law but have been getting it per Biden will no longer receive it during the shutdown. Also, those folks on Medicaid/Medicare rolls listed above the age of 120 will now be removed, as the oldest person in America is 107, and that is more than a mere handful. This is what Chuck Schumer and Hakeem Jeffries are arguing for and holding out over, and why 3 Senators who vote with the Democrats, including Fetterman, have already defected to the Republican side. More will follow in the days to come.
In the US the anyone who shows up to an ER has to be provided care per existing US law. T THAT law has not change. he only thing the Trump administration has done is strip what little funding hospitals received to help cover costs of uninsured ER care provided. This of course add yet more stress to rural hospitals that will already struggle under the Medicaid cuts.
What democrats want is an extension of the Obamacare funding that keeps healthcare for American citizens at an affordable rate. If it is allowed to expire, millions more will lose health coverage under Trump and team over and above those already losing coverage from Medicaid cuts. Funny how republicans don’t mention this as they lie to you.
Maxine Waters, one of your leaders, said Democrats want healthcare for “all” people residing in the U.S.
We on the left view healthcare as a human right. Conservatives seem ok to let the sick suffer in the street if unemployed, poor, or undocumented. Note hospitals actually view healthcare as a right and provide care to all that show up to ERs as required by law. Trump has only stripped the funding the help hospitals provide this very minimum care.
I also note you don’t seem to mind that this bill also will cause a spike to millions of American’s health insurance premiums under the ADA program. THAT is what this is really about but you focus what your dear leader tells you like a good little sheep.
But you be you.
You on the left view everything as a “right,” housing, etc. Hospitals recoup money from treating the indigent by overcharging insureds and insurance companies, making hospitalizations out of reach for some needing care such as knee replacements so they live with the pain. Hospitals are the main cause of the rise in healthcare costs. Since Medicaid was first established in 1965 by Johnson, the program has been primarily managed by state governments. Obamacare expanded Medicaid in 2010. Medicaid has changed significantly since 1965 and has become a rallying cry by the left for healthcare as a human right. Another boondoggle brought to you by the federal government.
————–
If healthcare is a right, that means that you expect somebody else to pay for your visits to the doctor, or your heart attack, or your broken leg.
Nobody pays for my medical care when I need it.
The Left is asserting that they have the right to force us to pay for the needs of others. That’s called Marxism : From each according to their ability, to each according to their needs (The Communist Manifesto 1848).
The political Left in the US is now indistinguishable from Communism.
It cost a community more to ignore the problems of public health, housing and food access.
Happy to discuss if interested.
———-
No, it wouldn’t. And nobody is “ignoring public health, housing and food access”. There are layers and layers of bureaucracies that purportedly busy themselves with these issues, to little effect.
So much for LBJ’s “War on Poverty” (sixty-one years ago).
I assumed you didn’t want to discuss and would resort to childish name calling.
Just the same, if interested, here is one very simple example:
https://www.ama-assn.org/about/leadership/maintaining-preventive-coverage-vital-public-health
——–
What are you talking about?
i do too because i see them working butts off in constructing crews & restaurants et al all over town.
i want healthcare etc for all people from anywhere working their butts off here !
.
If they’re working so hard they can pay for their own healthcare.
You know, like me.
shut it down permanently
My condolences to the kids of Forsyth County Schools going in today without a working local, state, or federal budget. Maybe when it’s their turn they will do better. It might be better if they didn’t learn what we think we have to teach them!
Free vacation for furloughed employees, parasitic or not. That is a win for them.
By law, furloughed federal workers are guaranteed back pay for the time they were out of work during a government shutdown. After the shutdown concludes, they will receive retroactive pay for the full period they were furloughed, at their standard rate of pay.
Legislation: This guarantee for federal employees is thanks to the Government Employee Fair Treatment Act of 2019 (GEFTA), which mandates that all federal employees affected by a funding lapse receive compensation for missed wages.
Payment timeline: Agencies are required to pay employees as soon as possible after funding is restored, regardless of the regular pay schedule.
You are correct. But what about the individuals who will be laid off during the shutdown? They want get their jobs back.