Captain’s log, Stardate 4385.3. It has been seven days since parts of the federal government were officially shut down until further notice. For those of you just tuning in, earlier this month President Donald Trump threatened that if Congress failed to approve his $5 billion funding request to construct his wall along the US-Mexico border, he would shut down the government. Democratic members of Congress refuse to vote for any semblance of a spending bill that includes the funding of Trump’s wall, and the President will take no less than the $5 billion he is requesting. Now that you’re all caught up, let’s return to our regularly scheduled content. In a recent poll taken between Dec. 21 – 23, 39 percent of registered voters — including 80 percent of Republicans — approved of the president’s current performance, whereas 56 percent — including 90 percent of Democrats and 57 percent of independents — did not, according to Morning Consult. The President’s current approval ratings haven’t been this low since refused to condemn neo-Nazis who held a white nationalist rally in Charlottesville, Virginia, back in August 2017.
As it stands, a quarter of the federal government is currently shut down, including the Department of Justice, Interior, and the Department of Homeland Security. In anticipation of a federal government shutdown, several weeks ago, U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue issued a public statement informing Americans, namely those that rely on the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP, on how the USDA will make its services available in the event of a shutdown.
“USDA is committed to safeguarding life and property through the critical services we provide – and should the government shutdown, we will continue to do just that. I am proud of each USDA employee for everything they do to benefit the farmers, ranchers, foresters, and producers who depend on our services. It is their mission each day to fulfill our USDA motto, ‘Do right and feed everyone.”
–Sonny Perdue, U.S. Secretary of Agriculture
Perdue went on to explain that the SNAP program and other government-funded food support programs including child nutrition programs in schools, and the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children, will “have funding available to operate through the month of February, and many have funds to continue operations through March…” The Trump administration reaffirmed their stance, at the time, on unplugging the government in the event of Congress deciding not to give Trump his milk money, with senior adviser Stephen Miller referring to this as a “fundamental issue.”
“Have the Democrats finally realized that we desperately need Border Security and a Wall on the Southern Border. Need to stop Drugs, Human Trafficking, Gang Members, and Criminals from coming into our Country. Do the Dems realize that most of the people not getting paid are Democrats?
–President Donald Trump on twitter
To make matters just a little bit more complicated, President Trump on Friday concocted several new threats indicating that if the Democrats failed to meet his wall-based demands, he would shut down the entire US border with Mexico, as well as cease foreign aid to several Latin American countries. Trump tweeted that he will be forced to take the aforementioned actions “if the obstructionist democrats do not give us money to finish the Wall and also change the ridiculous immigration laws that our country is saddled with.
I cannot believe that I am saying this, but President Trump is acting like a bully to get what he wants. No matter the side of the aisle you find yourself seated, I find it hard to believe that anyone would condone this type of presidential oversight. Controlling the fate of the country via threats to opposing political parties is not what this country was founded for.
