President Trump’s call for a government shutdown in September is completely reckless and would needlessly put our economy in harm’s way. Case in point: the 2013 government shutdown was a sixteen day national nightmare that cost our economy $24 billion, threw thousands of children off of Head Start, made the VA disability claims backlog worse, and halted loans to homeowners and small businesses on hold.
“The country shouldn’t be on the hook another $24 billion government shutdown just because Donald Trump is a failure at his job,” said American Bridge Vice President Shripal Shah. “The consequences of another shutdown would be devastating; callously calling for one during a Twitter tantrum proves that Trump doesn’t care about who he hurts while in office.”
Background:
2013 Government Shutdown Cost $24 Billion, Slowed Economic Growth. “The 16-day government shutdown took a $24 billion chunk out of the U.S. economy, according to an initial analysis from Standard & Poor’s. As a result, the rating agency projects that the U.S. economy will grow 2.4% in the fourth quarter — as opposed to the roughly 3% growth rate predicted prior to the shutdown.” [CNN Money, 10/16/13]
2013 Government Shutdown Sidetracked Creation Of 120,000 Jobs. “The 16-day shutdown also sidetracked the creation of an estimated 120,000 new jobs, according to a report from the Council of Economic Advisers.” [CNBC, 9/21/15]
2013 Government Shutdown Forced Thousands Of Children Out Of Head Start. “During the last government shutdown in 2013, thousands of children were briefly kicked out of Head Start programs, which are run by the Department of Health and Human Services. Centers in six states closed and about 7,000 children lost access to Head Start at least briefly, although a private foundation then stepped in to restore money to programs. ‘We know well the devastating impacts government shutdowns or potential government shutdowns can have on the 1 million vulnerable children we serve every year,’ said Sally Aman, a spokeswoman for the National Head Start Association.” [Education Week, 4/7/17]
2013 Government Shutdown Put Both Federal And Private Sector Loans To Small Businesses And Homeowners On Hold. “Federal loans to small businesses, homeowners, and families in rural communities were put on hold. Private-sector lending to individuals and small businesses was disrupted, because banks and lenders couldn’t access government income and Social Security Number verification services.” [White House Press Release, 11/7/13]
2013 Government Shutdown Temporarily Suspended Payments To The Families Of Fallen Soldiers. “Congress has ensured $100,000 payments to families of fallen service members would continue, passing a bill signed by President Barack Obama on Thursday. The payments had been suspended during the shutdown, prompting the Fisher House Foundation to volunteer to make the payments until the program got up and running again.” [AP, 10/13/13]
2013 Government Shutdown Forced Thousands Of Veterans To Be Furloughed, Increased VA Disability Claims Backlog By 2,000. “Already the VA has furloughed more than 7,800 employees, Shinseki, half of whom are veterans. While the VA has in the last six months made progress on reducing its disability claims backlog, the shutdown has reversed that progress, with the number of backlogged claims increasing by 2,000 since Oct. 1. ‘We’ve lost ground we fought hard to take,’ said Shinseki, who at multiple points in his testimony to Congress used military analogies to explain the challenges his department is facing.” [CBS News, 10/9/13]
2013 Government Shutdown Forced Consumer Product Safety Commission To Stop Screening Children’s Products For Lead. “The Consumer Product Safety Commission is no longer screening products at ports of entry to prevent potentially dangerous ones from reaching store shelves, such as children’s products containing excessive levels of lead.” [AP, 10/13/13]
2013 Government Shutdown Forced FBI To Put Investigations On Hold. “The FBI estimates that about 80 percent of its 35,000 employees are working and says it is prepared to meet any immediate threats. However, activities are suspended for other, longer-term investigations of crimes. Training and other support functions have been slashed.” [AP, 10/13/13]
2013 Government Shutdown Forced FDA And CDC To Stop Food Inspections. “The Food and Drug Administration and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention say they can handle recalls and high-risk foodborne outbreaks, but discovering them will be more difficult because many of the people who investigate outbreaks have been furloughed. Routine food safety inspections were suspended, so most food manufacturers won’t have to worry about periodic visits from government inspectors. U.S. food inspections abroad have also been halted.” [AP, 10/13/13]
Published: May 2, 2017