There is hope now that an agreement has been reached that can bring to an end the longest shutdown in US history. This is very welcome news, especially for the thousands of federal workers who have either been furloughed or who are working without pay, and for the forty-two million Americans who depend on the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program each month to feed themselves and their families. While many House and Senate Democrats are disappointed with the failure to secure a promise to extend support for the Affordable Care Act, they have certainly highlighted the issue. And the deal on the table which would fund the government through January 30 includes some other important concessions. These include the full funding of SNAP through 2026 and the promise that all federal workers who were let go during the shutdown will have their jobs restored and that those who have been working will be paid.
The President’s “one big, beautiful bill” that the Republican controlled Congress passed on July 3 was designed to postpone some of the harshest effects until after the 2026 midterms. One thing the shutdown did was to give Americans a foretaste of what some of the reductions contained in the bill will mean for them going forward.
The shutdown also brought into focus a president who seems out of touch with the experience of the majority of Americans. The President didn’t appear to be concerned that the government was shuttered, and when democrats asked to meet, when his involvement could likely have brought some earlier resolution, he remained unwilling to engage. As if in another world far removed, on October 31, just as the SNAP benefits were about to be suspended, the President hosted a dinner for his billionaire friends to tout his $300 million ballroom addition to the White House.
Many of those who voted for President Trump did so because of his promise to bring us an economy that worked for ordinary Americans. Will Democrats’ strong showing in the recent elections refocus the President’s and his administration’s attention where it should be, on the needs of the people?
The shutdown had a certain inevitability about it. The Project 2025 people the President has surrounded himself with welcomed it as just another opportunity to cut the workforce and reduce government services. As a country we are wandering in a kind of wilderness of uncertainty and confusion. In the wilderness the focus is first of all on surviving. But beyond that we may find it us to look for a reset, to ask ourselves and one another some big questions. About what things are most important. About choices we’ve made along the way that may need to be reconsidered. About the kind of country and the kind of government we want. And in this regard, we do well to remember that as citizens we have a voice, and that we continue to bear responsibility for dreaming and fashioning a country worthy of us. That from the beginning our democracy has asked of her citizens eternal vigilance, ongoing conversation, and correction. And in the wilderness a second thing to remember is hope. That we need to share our stories of longing and hope.
We would do well in this season to listen in on the stories that are being written by people who have continued to show up for the rest of us, with or without pay. To the stories of people doing their best in the face of difficult circumstances. To stories of people going out their way to help their neighbors. To the stories of business, community, and state leaders who are standing up for their fellow Americans.
Steve Bullington
Adrian
