⛔ GOP Government Shutdown
Key Point: Republicans are inflicting more harm on the American people by refusing to fund health care and keeping the government shut down. Families are feeling the pain now, but the damage is just beginning as they stand to lose more paychecks and important benefits the longer the shutdown lasts.
Here's The Facts
- More than 1 million federal workers have had their financial stability disrupted due to the shutdown.
- 730,000 people are working without pay, and another 670,000 are furloughed and not receiving a paycheck.
- The financial strain is particularly acute for air safety workers, including TSA officers and air traffic controllers, who are among the 60,000 federal employees currently unpaid, with many resorting to savings, credit cards, or secondary jobs to meet basic expenses.
- Over 4,100 federal workers have been fired during the Republican shutdown, including 20% of the workforce at the Department of Education, responsible for special education, civil rights enforcement, Title I funding, and after-school programs. As a result, communities will see:
- Delays in funding, oversight, and services that are essential for quality K-12 education.
- A loss of critical support, as nearly all staff in the office implementing the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act are being terminated.
- The loss of TRIO and other federal support programs, pushing higher education further out of reach for first-generation and low-income students.
- Teachers and local school boards will be left scrambling to fill gaps in oversight, compliance, and federal grants administration.
- A major loss of federal funding for after-school and summer learning programs.
- Thirty-six states have warned that millions could lose food assistance in November if Republicans continue blocking government funding and prevent states from accessing SNAP resources, including:
- New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Texas, Illinois, California, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Colorado, Oregon, and Montana.
- The early-education program Head Start, which serves low-income preschool children through federal grants, is at risk of closing in November because of Trump’s shutdown.
- Rural housing programs are taking a hit during Trump’s shutdown as grants are delayed, frozen, or at-risk of running out of funds.
- The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Rural Development housing program has signlaed no new loans, grants, or loan guarantees would be issued during a shutdown.
- The USDA Section 521 Rental Assistance Program, which subsidizes rent for tenants in certain USDA-financed rural properties, may continue payments only while funds last. After about 30 days of a shutdown in past instances, these payments became less certain.
- Funding for the Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program is stalled as vulnerable families in colder regions of the country could use help with rising energy costs.
- Energy assistance is already being delayed a month in Pennsylvania, and in Tennessee, the state is putting people on waiting lists until more funds arrive.
- Veterans’ education and career service programs have been halted in the middle of the school year, including college expenses paid for by the G.I. Bill, disrupting education for thousands of people who served their country and earned their benefits.
- Trump and Republicans are still refusing to fund health care and reopen the government, extending the pain for families and local communities the longer the shutdown lasts.
- Trump and Republican leadership are completely disengaged from negotiating with Democrats to reopen the government and bring an end to the uncertainty and chaos Americans are facing.
- Funding health care in order to fund the government should be a no-brainer, but Trump and Republicans want to continue the government shutdown so they can fire more workers and make even deeper cuts to the programs families rely on.
- When Democrats came to negotiate, Trump and Republicans walked away, refusing to even consider funding health care and keeping the government open.
- When more paychecks are missed, services are delayed, and people feel more financial pain, it’ll be because Republicans refused to negotiate and create a reasonable compromise on behalf of American families.
- Americans deserve better than Republican governance. They deserve a government that functions and health care they can afford.
🏥 HEALTH CARE
Key Point: Trump promised better, cheaper health care. Instead, he slashed nearly $900 billion from Medicaid, the ACA, and vital health programs to fund billionaire tax breaks.
Here's The Facts
- Nearly $900 billion in health care cuts. Trump’s 2025 budget slashed funding for Medicaid, the Affordable Care Act, and subsidies that working families rely on, all to make room for billionaire tax breaks.
- Trump is still trying to repeal the Affordable Care Act. His administration is pushing plans to unwind coverage for millions, with no serious replacement.
- Millions are at risk of losing Medicaid. Proposed changes to the program add cumbersome requirements that could rip coverage away from low-income families, seniors in nursing homes, and children with disabilities.
- Mental health & addiction programs are on the chopping block. Trump’s budget includes deep cuts to behavioral health grants and suicide prevention programs, even as demand hits record highs. Trump also paused rules to hold insurers accountable for unlawfully denying mental health coverage.
- He’s politicizing the Department of Health and Human Services. Trump’s appointments are focused on further curtailling reproductive rights, restricting public access to life-saving vaccines, and deprioritizing the role of science within the agency.
- Rural hospitals are at risk of closing. Trump’s refusal to invest in rural health systems is putting hospitals at risk, leaving entire communities without care. The massive cuts to health care spending will take needed federal assistance away from rural hospitals and clinics.
- Americans are being told to pay more and get less. That’s the TrumpCare vision: less coverage, higher premiums, fewer protections, and a free pass for Big Pharma and private insurers.
💵 THE ECONOMY
Key Point: Trump’s economy is faltering. Jobs are down, prices are up, and small businesses are struggling. His tariffs and policies are fueling inflation and uncertainty, dragging the economy toward stagflation.
Here's The Facts
- Job growth is collapsing. June and May jobs reports were revised down by a combined 258,000 jobs.
- Unemployment is rising, and long-term unemployment is at a post-pandemic high. Inflation continues to tick up each month. CPI for all items rose in August, and in the last year, prices for all items increased 2.9%.
- Trump’s tariffs are driving up costs and will cost the average American household $2,400 this year – with families facing 40% higher prices for footwear, 38% higher prices for apparel, and a 3.3% spike in food prices.
- Trump’s tariff taxes will increase the number of Americans living in poverty by between 650,000 and 875,000.
- Main Street is paying the price. Tariffs, higher interest rates, and policy whiplash are crushing small businesses.
- Stagflation is back. Growth is slowing down, and prices are rising — a self-inflicted wound caused by Trump’s trade policies and fiscal chaos.
- Trump’s fake economic “boom” is unraveling, just like his promises.
🏥 PUBLIC HEALTH
Key Point: Trump’s administration has weakened public health infrastructure by slashing funding, delaying vaccine safety reforms, and enabling misinformation, all while measles outbreaks surge and vaccine hesitancy grows.
Here's The Facts
- He slashed funding for CDC and pandemic preparedness. Trump’s 2025 budget cut millions from programs meant to detect and respond to disease outbreaks — even after the lessons of COVID-19.
- Climate and environmental health protections are being gutted. The Trump EPA rolled back air and water quality rules, despite growing health threats from extreme heat, wildfires, and pollution.
- Reversing course on reproductive health. Trump reinstated and expanded the global gag rule, defunded Title X family planning providers, and targeted contraception access at home and abroad.
- Politicization of the CDC is back. Senior public health experts report interference and suppression of science-based guidance — the same playbook Trump used in 2020.
- Gun violence research? None. Despite rising gun deaths, Trump is stonewalling funding for research and prevention, giving the NRA everything it wants.
- Public health equity programs are being dismantled. Trump is rolling back initiatives aimed at closing racial and economic health gaps, and replacing them with nothing.
- Measles outbreaks are back. With falling vaccination rates, 2025 has seen the worst measles resurgence in over a decade — and Trump’s silence is deafening.
- Childhood vaccination rates are dropping. In multiple states, vaccine coverage is below herd immunity levels — putting entire communities at risk.
- Food safety and overdose prevention are underfunded. While opioid deaths rise and foodborne illnesses spike, Trump is prioritizing corporate giveaways over public safety.
- Public health leaders are leaving. State and federal agencies are bleeding talent due to Trump’s culture of chaos and contempt.
🧓 SOCIAL SECURITY
Key Point: The Social Security Administration is crippled by staffing cuts and operational chaos, making it harder for seniors and disabled Americans to access benefits. At the same time, the administration quietly lays the groundwork to privatize the program.
Here's The Facts
- Trump’s team is pushing to privatize Social Security. In June, his Treasury Secretary, advisor Scott Bessent, let the truth slip: Trump wants Wall Street to manage retirement accounts, calling it a backdoor to privatization.
- The Social Security Administration is in crisis. Trump’s administration slashed SSA’s administrative budget, leading to:
- Longer wait times for benefits processing and appeals.
- Field office closures in rural and underserved communities.
- Hiring freezes and staff attrition that have ground customer service to a crawl.
- Overburdened caseworkers, with many handling double or triple their usual caseloads.
- Trump replaced experienced SSA leadership with a political loyalist more focused on cutting costs than serving retirees, disabled Americans, or survivors.
- Low-income seniors are paying the price. Cuts to SSI outreach, disability benefits reviews, and appeal processing are hurting the most vulnerable Americans.
🎓 EDUCATION
Key Point: Trump’s 2025 budget cuts slashed Head Start and public education funding, drained resources from public schools, and rolled back protections. He’s leaving students, teachers, and working families without the support they need.
Here's The Facts
- Trump proposed a 15% cut to the Department of Education in his 2025 budget. That includes slashing funding for public K-12 schools, teacher training, student mental health services, and classroom technology.
- He gutted the Department’s Office for Civil Rights. Staffing has been reduced, investigations into discrimination complaints have stalled, and protections for vulnerable students are being quietly rolled back.
- Head Start is on the chopping block. Trump’s budget cuts would eliminate thousands of slots for early childhood education, hitting low-income families hardest. Fewer kids in classrooms, fewer working parents with support.
- His voucher push is a handout to private schools. Trump’s plan to massively expand federally funded school vouchers would drain resources from public schools and funnel tax dollars into elite private and religious institutions.
- Higher education is under attack.
- Pell Grant access is being tightened, putting college further out of reach for low- and middle-income students.
- Student loan forgiveness plans were rolled back, even for public servants and teachers.
- His allies are trying to eliminate DEI programs and censor curriculum on race, gender, and history.
- Rural schools and underfunded districts are left behind. Trump’s cuts disproportionately hurt rural and low-income communities already struggling to keep teachers, maintain facilities, and provide basic resources.
🎖️ VETERANS
Key Point: Thousands of federal veteran workers have been laid off since Trump took office, causing delays and disruptions in critical services.
Here's The Facts
- VA staffing shortages are worse than ever. The VA has cut over 17,000 jobs this year, with the ultimate goal of firing 30,000 positions. Hiring freezes and budget uncertainty have left clinics understaffed and wait times up, especially in rural communities
- Mental health support is being slashed. Suicide prevention and PTSD programs are facing deep cuts in the 2025 budget, despite rising demand.
- Benefits processing delays are skyrocketing. Trump’s administration has failed to modernize systems, leaving veterans in limbo for months.
- Trump withdrew his own VA tech nominee for political reasons. The result? A leadership vacuum at the Office of Information and Technology during critical modernization efforts.
🌾 FARMERS
Key Point: Trump’s trade wars and tariff policies have slashed demand for American farm products, raised input costs, and deepened financial strain, threatening the livelihoods of rural families and farm workers.
Here's The Facts
- Helping Foreign Competitors Take Export Markets From U.S. Farmers: The Trump administration delivered $20 billion to Argentina, a competitor for soybean export markets, and is looking to provide an additional $20 billion in the future. The administration is also planning to raise beef import quotas from the country by four times their current levels, angering cattle ranchers who say his plan risks damaging the livelihoods of ranchers and having little impact on the price of beef for American families.
- Trump’s tariffs are punishing American farmers, again. Input costs are rising, exports are falling, and commodity prices are tanking due to Trump’s escalating trade war.
- Reduced Support for Farmers: Deep cuts to USDA programs have slashed critical financial and technical support that farmers rely on to stay afloat, especially small and family-run operations.
- Loss of Crop Insurance & Disaster Aid: Funding reductions in crop insurance and disaster assistance programs leave farmers vulnerable to extreme weather and market fluctuations, increasing the risk of financial ruin.
- Rural Development Underfunded: USDA cuts have gutted rural development initiatives that build infrastructure, improve broadband access, and support farm communities — making it harder for farmers to operate and thrive.
- Increased Costs and Uncertainty: With less USDA assistance, farmers face skyrocketing costs and mounting uncertainty, threatening food supply stability and rural economies nationwide.