Heartbreaking Consequences of the Government Shutdown

Heartbreaking Consequences of the Government Shutdown

KLAMATH FALLS, OR— President Trump’s border wall failed in the Senate

The Senate will vote on competing bills to reopen the government on Thursday, though neither is expected to pass, as nearly 800,000 federal workers face down missing their second paycheck on Friday.

According to a career survey, almost 80 percent of Americans live paycheck to paycheck and most government employees don't go into their line of work to get wealthy; they do it to serve the public. As CBS News' Ed O'Keefe reports, an increasing number of them say they don't think they can afford to keep their government jobs.

One paycheck from peril, Sigrid Layne, a furloughed federal worker, now faces a more urgent reality. "As of today, I have a dollar and six cents in my bank account," Layne said. "It's very terrifying when you look at your bank account, you have no money coming in, you don't know when you're going to get your next paycheck, and you're like, 'What do I do?'"

So far, her answer? Get groceries at food banks and sell things off her own shelves.

At one food distribution center in Washington D.C., foot traffic is up about 20 percent this month at the area food banks they serve. They're on track to serve more than a half a million more meals this month than a typical January, all because of the shutdown.

The American Federation of Government Employees filed suit Monday on behalf of the approximately 420,000 federal employees who are working without pay following the Dec. 22 government shutdown.

The union claims the government is violating the Fair Labor Standards Act, and in a statement, its president called the requirement “inhumane.”

"Federal workers are going to be penalized for not paying their bills on time - when we just want to go back to work,” said Loreen Targos, a physical scientist for the EPA.

Democratic Plan to End Shutdown Without Wall Fails in Senate

A Democratic plan to reopen the government without money for President Trump’s border wall failed in the Senate on Thursday, sending lawmakers back to the drawing board to forge a compromise that could end the stalemate and bring about a quick resolution to a partial shutdown now nearing its sixth week.

A half dozen Republicans crossed the aisle to vote for the measure, but the tally still fell short of the 60 votes it needed to advance, 52-44. The defeated measure is similar to one the Senate approved unanimously in December, only to see Mr. Trump reject it and the House cancel a planned vote on it. Republican views in the Senate have shifted dramatically since then to reflect the president’s.

The back-to-back votes illustrated the gulf between Mr. Trump and Democrats in the ongoing shutdown saga. But lawmakers and aides in both parties expressed hope that the double-barreled losses will break the logjam that has gripped Washington since the partial shutdown began Dec. 22 and force the two sides to come up with an alternative that both can support.

“Is this the beginning of the end, or is it just the end of the beginning? We shall find out,” said Senator Richard Shelby, Republican of Alabama.

House Democrats are discussing a proposal to spend as much as $5.2 billion on what they are calling a “smart wall” with drones, sensors, some additional fencing, but no wall from the Pacific to the Gulf of Mexico.

James Garland of Tulelake News
Send sources on local and national news:
Email: tulelakenews@yahoo.com
Cell # (530) 708-7852

James Garland Facebook Page ---> Here

James Charles Garlan@JamesCGarland Twitter ---> Here

TheRealRocks4me YouTube Channel ---> Here

Last Chance Hotel YouTube Channel ---> Here

Liberal Local Politics USA Facebook Page ---> Here

Comments