Fallout Begins in Government Shutdown

And so, the shutdown begins . . .

The federal government partially shut down today after the Senate couldn’t agree on a spending deal. Congressional Democrats and Republicans both dug in and refused to accept what the other offered to reach an acceptable agreement. This is certainly not the first time our federal government reached a stalemate that ended in a shutdown. But how long will this shutdown last, and how damaging could it be?

As reported by Fox News:

The federal government is officially entering a partial shutdown on Wednesday after the midnight funding deadline passed with Democrats and Republicans failing to agree on a funding bill.

An earlier attempt by Senate Republicans to pass a short-term extension of

fiscal year (FY) 2025 government funding levels, called a continuing resolution (CR), was sunk by Democrats who were furious about being sidelined in shutdown negotiations.

The bill, which would have given Congress until Nov. 21 to set FY 2026 funding priorities, passed the House largely along party lines on Sept. 19. The Senate is expected to vote on the same bill again on Wednesday, with more votes to come through the rest of the week and into the weekend until either a deal is struck or Democrats relent.

The far Left is being accused of wanting to increase government spending by about $1.5 TRILLION. And their proposal also wanted to restrict Executive authority, roll back the President’s “Big Beautiful Bill,” and extend COVID-era subsidies. 

Now many federal employees will be furloughed without pay until the shutdown is resolved, at which point they will be compensated retroactively, as will essential employees like law enforcement agencies, air traffic controllers, etc. Unfortunately, they will be working without pay until the shutdown ends.

Here are some federal departments and programs that will reportedly continue through the shutdown:

• Social Security/Medicare/Medicaid payments will continue.
• Most veteran programs will continue.
• Air traffic controllers and TSA will continue.
• Federal law enforcement and border patrol.
• Military personnel will stay on duty.
• Student aid for higher education.
• Postal service (funded by postage).

House Speaker Mike Johnson spoke about the shutdown and pointed out that this is the same bill the far Left voted for a few months ago, but they’re choosing to hold the American government hostage unless they get their way. As Johnson put it:

There is nothing new in this legislation. There’s no poison pill. There’s no partisan tricks. There’s no gimmicks whatsoever. The only difference today is the man who is sitting in the Oval Office. Rather than work with President Trump and Republicans to get this job done, as our party has done repeatedly in the same situation over the years, Democrats want to play political games with the lives and the livelihoods of Americans.

The simple truth is Democrats in Congress have dragged our country into another reckless shutdown to satisfy their far-Left base. That is the truth. Whether or not the government remains open or reopens is entirely up to them. There’s still time for Democrats to pass this clean bipartisan bill that’s sitting before them. And we encourage our Democratic colleagues to do that. I certainly pray they’ll come to their senses soon, do the right and responsible thing.

Why would the far Left Members of Congress go along with similar legislation in the past, but refuse now? Some speculate the Left really felt the wrath of its  more extreme base for working with Republicans before, so now they’re really going to dig in.  

  A government shutdown is never a great thing. We’d always prefer to avoid them. But hopefully, it appears this one won’t be all doom and gloom the way the Left would have us believe. And in this case, it certainly seems this shutdown is on the far Left.

Today’s Sekulow broadcast included more analysis on this partial shutdown with my brother Jordan Sekulow. We also discussed a new Senate report that confirms that the Biden TSA targeted U.S. Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard.

Watch the full broadcast below: