Government Shutdown Countdown Continues
Lawmakers from both political parties are working this weekend in hopes of avoiding another government shutdown. The last shutdown was the longest in the nation's history as both sides felt intense criticism from the American Public.Currently the government has enough money to fund the country until February 15th. However, to get the legislation passed and through Congress to the president's desk before the deadline, the work has to be finalized by the end of this weekend.
As in the first government shutdown of the year, the key issue appears to be how much, if any, funding their will be for border security and or the Wall. Republicans and the president want something close to five billion dollars, while the Democrats are looking at around one billion dollars.
President Trump made his case to the American Public Tuesday night during his State of the Union Speech. He made it clear that the country is stronger when both parties put aside politics for the collective national good.
The last shutdown impacted over 800,00 federal workers, some who had to work without pay. NBC News reports that some workers have not yet received their back pay. Companies that have government contracts are struggling to get back up and running after going thirty five days without payment.
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, Democrat New York, told WROC that he feels confident that another shutdown will not happen. Let's hope he's right.