When he was asked about the government workers who don’t know when their next paycheck will arrive, he had no difficulty imagining that they loved him and what he was doing. “This really does have a higher purpose than next week’s pay,” Trump said. Putting himself in their shoes for a moment, he said, “I think they’d say, ‘Mr. President, keep going. This is far more important.’ ”While some landlords and banks may be willing to cut government workers some slack for now, that won't last. They're not going to be able to take IOUs to the grocery store or the gas station.
Trump has never worked for anyone else in his life. He has no idea what it is like to be a paycheck or three from being broke.
More than that, Trump regards anyone who does work for a paycheck as a disposable, interchangable chump. He triples that disregard for government workers. Sooner or later, you're going to see the workers on furlough getting other jobs and those who are working without pay instituting wildcat slowdowns and sickouts.
So this may be a good time to revise your travel plans to either not go or drive.
TSA is already struggling to staff positions due to “sick” employees who are working other jobs to make payments. The thing that will really hit the Trump voters is the IRS. The programming for tax returns has stopped, without all the new forms having been issued, and until that happens, you can’t even file a return. Those that can, if the IRS elects to accept returns, will see their returns accepted but not acted upon. No refunds until the IRS opens back up, and even then, everything waits till those forms get finished and the computers programmed. All those people used to saving via the tax refund are gonna be surprised...but is it a comspiracy to suggest that delaying the time that people see how little refund they get from Donnie’s changes is part of the plan?
ReplyDeleteAs a bonus, this means more fraud is likely this year, as people being delayed filing gives the grifters more time to setup fake returns in peoples names and SSN’s. It also means more money for refund anticipation loan businesses, but even they are hurt because they can’t do the loans until people can fill out the correct forms. All that money delayed from entering the economy is a problem, we’re losing 0.1% from GDP every two weeks of the shutdown, a figure that will increase as the reality of no paychecks starts to cause real problems.
Don’t forget those low salary/wage positions the govenment needs filled all the time (TSA, National Park Staff, entry level administrative, etc.) are gonna get much harder to fill, as anyone applying will have this mess in mind and will understand the same thing could happen next year. That will be on top of the increase that is going to happen in retirements, and the loss of institutional knowledge and staffing.
Take the FAA, the current fully qualified Air Traffic Controller staffing is at a 30 year low. The 2013 shutdown blew a giant hole in the replacement staffing plan the FAA had, and this shutdown is multiplying those woes. 18% of the current workforce can retire anytime, and replacements take 2-4 years on average to train.
P.S. Can someone explain why the 50,000 Coast Guard personnel are special versus the 750,000 other unpaid Feds? Congress is advancing a bill to pay them, and them only, during the shutdown. I’m not disparaging the Coast Guard, just wondering why some animals are more equal than others? It’s jusy like the hypocracy that occurred during the money saving furloughs due to sequestration, and some Congresspersons found their flights were delayed due to short staffing in the Air Traffic Control system, so the FAA got a sudden exemption. Of course, the controllers that served a furlough day never got back pay, unlike the other Federal employees...
ReplyDeleteCP88- the Coasties are hard to do without.
ReplyDeleteCongress should also stop their own pay, and that of the President. Add the Veep, Supreme Court, and all political appointees. And don't give them any back pay.
And much of the cabinet and staff just got a $10K raise.
ReplyDelete-Doug in Oakland
The Coasties can’t find other jobs and quit.
ReplyDeleteAnd, again, COngress seems to feel the same way as Trump about those paychecks....But I don't see you castigating them here. They could easily solve this problem. But they won't. They'd rather see who can piss farther, them or President Trump.
ReplyDeleteDouble standards and all that apply here.
Both sides are guilty. Admit it. Be honest.
Uh, the RW trope, “You Commies know I’m right! Admit it!” is so 2003.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteNo, Donnie and McConnell are guilty. Allow a Senate vote and hand a bill to Donnie, see if he’ll own it.
ReplyDeleteComrade, that’s the best point.
0_0, but TSA, ATC, Secret Service, FBI and such for a few are hard to do without too.
By the way, B., what happened to Mexico paying for it? Why are we paying now?
ReplyDeleteCP88, I'll disagree about the TSA. I am otherwise unaware of who is and who isn't getting paid, but it's bullshit. Spending money is Congress's job, and if they don't include spending for whatever and the Prez can't negotiate it, then that' should be the budget.
ReplyDeleteComrade has a good point about the Coasties. Not that anyone with a good gov't job is going to quit over this.
0_0, you’re wrong on that. A number of trainees in my profession have quit or will have to quit of this doesn’t pan out by next Friday. With 18% of the workforce able to walk, we’re all considering that this is likely to reoccur next Oct, so maybe it is time to go. A number of critically staffed facilities already have mandatory six day workweeks, imagine if you lose another 5-10% of the workforce.
ReplyDelete