Shutdown of the Century

As of December 22, 2018, the government has shut down as President Donald Trump stubbornly awaits for funding to enhance his wall along the southwestern border. Trump has made it no secret from the very beginning that his intentions were set on building this barrier. When Congress could not come to an agreement on spending bills this year, a continuing resolution was issued until a solution is created. As of now, Congress has put their foot down and refused to provide funding. In fact, Trump walked out of a negotiating session with Nancy Pelosi, a Democratic House Speaker, after she told him they would not be able to fund the wall either. This shutdown demonstrates how our society depends on the federal government.

As a result, the citizens of America must pay the price for the President’s immaturity. As the government shuts down, all “non-essential” services will collapse– museums, national parks, etc. While “essential” services — postal workers and TSA personnel — continue to work, they are unaware of when their next paycheck will arrive. Overall, this shutdown is a major inconvenience to the economy, society, and America as a whole. It has led to a wastage of money on unnecessary demands from the President and will also decrease the productivity of workers in the federal branch that are considered “non-essential workers.”

To add on, President Trump is demanding 5.6 billion dollars in order to build this wall. Of course, the main goal of this barrier is to prevent people from illegally entering the country. Despite this, it has been expressed that this will do little to prevent people from crossing the border. Most of the blame can be placed on Trump for the closing; however, little is being done in the ways of compromise. Democrats and Republicans have very different opinions on many issues, this time to the topic being immigration. This is what has made the government shutdown so frustrating. Neither party is making any progress in working towards a solution or compromise to solve this shutdown, which is becoming a major issue for many people.

With so many people affected by the shutdown, it is in the Congress and President’s best interest to come to a compromise soon. Several federal workers are receiving no pay for their services to support their families, and even those who are receiving pay are having delayed paychecks. For all we know, the wall may not even prevent the illegal immigration that Trump is set out to fix. With no end in sight for this shutdown, only time will tell if construction for Trump’s wall will begin or if the Democrats will triumph, leaving Trump pouting in the corner.