On October 1, following a week of struggle within the government concerning health insurance subsidies, House Democrats and Republicans failed to agree on spending bills to fund government operations. Thus, the United States government shut down for the third time during Donald Trump’s two presidential terms. In an effort to better understand the current circumstances, we asked some of the sixth-form Young Dems and Reps heads for their thoughts.
Q: What has led to this, and how has your party contributed?
“The government should not depend on standoffs in Congress, which is what occurred here.” —Alex Foley (Young Reps)
“The extent of political polarization in our country is unbelievable and, ultimately, counterproductive to the needs of the American people.” —Jess Shapiro (Young Dems)
“It is important that Republicans stand firm on their principles. You do have to compromise, but to what extent? I don’t know where that would be, but one thing is, Trump isn’t backing down from what he wants.” —Kevin Cai (Young Reps)
Q: How does this situation compare to the previous shutdown from 2018–19?
“This shutdown is numerically more substantial. It is affecting the government entirely. We also are coming off of Trump making significant cuts to federal employees as it is.” —Jess Shapiro
“In 2019, the shutdown was more about border security funding. Now it’s more about overall spending priorities and growing national debt. They both lead to some sort of furlough of people who work in government, like laying off some people or what you call essential versus non-essential government positions or workers.” —Kevin Cai
Q: How does this affect citizens, specifically students?
“Most Groton students will not see the effects of the shutdown. Services like the Post Office, Federal Law Enforcement, and hospitals will remain open and functioning. Outside the Circle, the effects will be vast; many of the 4 million federal workers are furloughed, meaning that they do not work during the shutdown, and the rest, who are deemed essential, must work without pay until the end of the shutdown, when they receive back pay for their hours worked.” —Jamie Abramson (Young Dems)
“As my peers and I go into college, financial aid will be affected by the government shutdown because there’s going to be delays, which hurts future college students.” —Alex Foley
The events occurring in the White House and issues circulating within federal establishments sometimes appear removed from the rest of us, as they might seem like they exist only in the news. However, if this government shutdown endures or another one comes to soon take its place, we as Groton students will begin to plainly see the effects in our everyday lives. In an era of polarization, be open to all perspectives, and remind lawmakers of this notion through actions as small as an email, as they can sometimes feel removed, too.
