Tag: #TrumpShutDown

WORKERS SPEAK OUT: ‘The Shutdown Needs To End’

Trump is to blame for the government shutdown. He said it himself: “I will be the one to shut it down.” Now, workers across the country are scared they won’t get paid and want the shutdown to end. Republicans must join Democrats in standing up for these workers and reopening the government.

Here are real stories of workers hurt by the Trump Shutdown:

“I have to save every penny right now.” – Federal worker

“It’s very difficult to figure out how long we can survive with the savings we have.” – Federal worker Continue reading “WORKERS SPEAK OUT: ‘The Shutdown Needs To End’”

Trump’s arguments about the wall are mostly exaggerated or false

A broad debunking.

President Trump’s sales pitch for a wall on the U.S. border with Mexico hasn’t really changed much since he first launched his presidential campaign in 2015. He summarized it in a tweet Thursday meant to pressure Democrats into acquiescing to his demand for billions in dollars of funding for its construction.

“Need to stop Drugs, Human Trafficking, Gang Members & Criminals from coming into our Country,” Trump wrote with his idiosyncratic capitalization. Later in the day he added that Democrats want an “Open Southern Border and the large scale crime that comes with such stupidity.”

Democrats don’t want “open borders,” of course, but oppose the construction of the wall in part because it’s so central to Trump’s priorities. But the bigger reason Democrats oppose construction of the wall is that Trump’s arguments about what the wall will prevent are inflated or incorrect.

View the complete December 27 article by Philip Bump on The Washington Post website here.

Workers Speak Out Against Trump Shutdown: ‘The Man Only Cares About Himself’

Americans blame Trump for the government shutdown. Trump said “I will be the one to shut it down,” and that’s exactly what he did. Now, workers across the country are struggling because they don’t know when their next paycheck will come.

Here are real stories of workers hurt by the Trump Shutdown:

“People need their money. I don’t think it’s right for us to have to use our sick days. … The man [Trump] only cares about himself.”- Federal worker

“My supervisor told me we won’t be getting paid, so my bills won’t be getting paid.” – Federal worker Continue reading “Workers Speak Out Against Trump Shutdown: ‘The Man Only Cares About Himself’”

REALITY CHECK: Trump Is Responsible For The Government Shutdown

During his cabinet meeting today, Trump doubled down on the Trump Shutdown, saying he will keep the government shut down for “as long as it takes.” Trump also peddled more lies to try to pass blame for the hundreds of thousands of workers who are suffering because they don’t know when their next paycheck will come.

TRUMP YESTERDAY: Trump said he thinks Americans think he’s right to shut down the government over his border wall.

Trump: “I think the people of this country think I’m right.”

REALITY: A majority of voters oppose the Trump Shutdown.

A majority of voters oppose Trump shutting down the government over border wall funding, while only 29% support it. Continue reading “REALITY CHECK: Trump Is Responsible For The Government Shutdown”

Many National Park Service Sites Are Closed, But One Isn’t – The Old Post Office Tower At The Trump Hotel

While many national parks across the country are closed because of the Trump Shutdown, the one National Park Service site that directly affects Trump will soon reopen.

The National Park Service was forced to close many of the nation’s most popular parks because of the Trump Shutdown.

USA Today: “As the nation enters the holiday weekend under a federal government shutdown, many of its most popular national parks and attractions will either be closed or partially closed.”

Trump’s D.C. Hotel will see its National Park Service site reopen this week at the Old Post Office Tower.

E&E News: “President Trump’s last-minute demands for billions in border wall funding triggered the partial federal government shutdown that closed national parks and facilities late last month — but his namesake hotel in the nation’s capital will see its own National Park Service site reopen this week.”

‘I am all alone (poor me) in the White House’: Trump goes off the rails in pre-Christmas tweetstorm

He did find time to praise Saudi Arabia, the country responsible for the assassination of a Washington Post journalist.

It’s Christmas Eve. The markets are tanking after the Treasury Secretary posted a statement causing even greater panic. The partial shutdown of the federal government has entered its third day.

President Trump over the past 24 hours or so has posted 22 tweets, including some just minutes before midnight. He’s attacked the Federal Reserve, Democrats, foreign allies, his own anti-ISIS coalition chief, the “FAKE NEWS,” and his outgoing Secretary of Defense, Jim Mattis.

He did find time to praise Saudi Arabia, the country responsible for the assassination of a Washington Post journalist.

View the complete December 24 article on the AlterNet.org website here.

Shutdown Effects: Breakdown by Department and Agency

Thousands of federal employees will be working without a paycheck

Thousands of federal employees face the prospect of working without a paycheck as the White House budget office Friday night directed the heads of government departments and agencies to begin implementing shutdown plans.

Funding for nine departments and other agencies lapsed at midnight as President Donald Trump remained in a standoff with Congress, his demand for funding for wall construction along the border with Mexico the sticking point in talks over appropriations and a stopgap funding measure.

“Although we are hopeful that this lapse in appropriations will be of short duration, employees should report to work for their next regularly scheduled tour of duty to undertake orderly shutdown activities,” Office of Management and Budget Director Mick Mulvaney wrote in a memo to department and agency heads as the midnight deadline for funding approached.

View the complete December 22 article by Elvina Nawaguna on The Roll Call website here.

‘They’re going to absolutely crush him’: Trump is reportedly panicking and ‘losing it’ as Democrats finally gain the upper hand

He didn’t realize he’s playing a losing game.

President Donald Trump is not used to presiding over a divided government, and it’s clear he’s not going to like it.

His performance in the government funding fight, in which he first promised he’d be “proud” to shut down the government in exchange for border wall spending, then backed down from the fight, and then reversed himself again, proved he’s a terrible negotiator and an even worse statesman.

Now that he’s in a position to infuriate his base if he doesn’t get the border wall money or infuriate the majority of the country if the government shuts down, he’s given all his chips to the Democrats. They can still use the filibuster to block any spending bill in the Senate, and soon-to-be House Speaker Nancy Pelosi appears absolutely giddy at the thought that she will have a Democrat majority in her chamber come January that can easily block any other Trump priorities.

View the complete December 21 article on the AlterNet.org website here.

‘He takes no ownership — that’s just Trump’: President eschews responsibility for a shutdown he once craved

This stalemate is just the latest in a long line of threats from President Trump to shut down the government if he doesn’t get his way. (Video: Jenny Starrs /Photo: Jabin Botsford/The Washington Post)

In 2014, Donald Trump sued to have his name taken off a pair of Atlantic City casinos he built three decades earlier that had gone bankrupt.

It took the president just 10 days this month to remove his name from something else he once proudly owned but that wasn’t going great — the federal government shutdown.

After threatening a shutdown for months over border wall funding and vowing last week that he would “take the mantle” of responsibility, Trump tried to shift the blame Friday, just hours before a government funding bill expired at midnight.

View the complete December 22 article by David Nakamura on The Washington Post website here.

DNC on Trump Government Shutdown

DNC Chair Tom Perez released the following statement after Donald Trump and congressional Republicans forced a government shutdown:

“The Trump Shutdown is here, and American workers will pay the price. The president should be ashamed that he is targeting American workers with his latest temper tantrum right before the holidays. Voters spoke out last month, and their message was clear: we do not support the Trump agenda, we are not paying for your wall, and Republicans do not stand for our values.

“Democrats offered multiple proposals to keep the government open, including a strong bipartisan solution passed by voice vote in the Senate. But Trump and congressional Republicans yet again demonstrated that they are unable to govern.

“President Trump campaigned on his so-called dealmaking skills. And yet, he’s proved incapable of making a deal that works for the American people. This is who the president is: a failed dealmaker with the temperament of a toddler. The American people have had enough. That’s why they elected Democrats last month up and down the ballot across the country. And that’s why they’re going to make Donald Trump a one-term president.”