WASHINGTON, D.C. – It's been one week since the government shutdown began, and the strain is starting to show, especially in air travel, as flight delays increase nationwide, as air traffic control workers are calling in sick.
On Tuesday, President Trump suggested that some furloughed workers won't receive back pay when the shutdown ends. When asked about the issue, he said the administration "will follow the law."
So far, neither side is moving closer to ending the shutdown as a mostly partisan stand-off persists regarding changes to healthcare.
House Speaker Mike Johnson was very clear on Tuesday that for every week that passes, some real hardships would follow for federal working families.
"A month-long shutdown would mean not just 750,000 federal civilian employees furloughed right now, but an additional 43,000 more unemployed Americans across the economy, because that is the effect, the ripple effect that it has in the private sector," Johnson said.
The Federal Aviation Administration says staffing issues are causing delays at several airports across the country. About 13,000 air traffic controllers and about 50,000 Transportation Security Administration officers must still turn up for work during the shutdown. They are not being paid now, but the FAA says they'll be paid retroactively after the shutdown ends.
Nutrition programs for women, infants, and children, or WIC, are also being shuttered. And Border Patrol agents, those who are called to protect and serve us, are now doing so without pay.
This has been a battle with both sides of the aisle digging in. Both seem to have two different visions of what a spending resolution should look like.
Johnson's consistent message is that Republicans in the House and Senate are calling on a handful of Democrats to join them in a seven-week stopgap funding measure to "keep the lights on." But Democrats are showing little signs of budging from their demand for concessions on health care.
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries said, "Democrats in the House and Democrats in the Senate continue to hold the line on the behalf of the American people. Why? Because we're fighting to protect their healthcare."
Democrats say they're fighting to restore Medicaid cuts made by Republicans. But they also want that short-term, seven-week funding to include extending Obamacare tax credits, so health insurance premiums don't go up for millions of Americans. Those subsidies are set to expire by the end of the year.
On Monday, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer denied President Trump's claim that talks are ongoing between Democrats and the White House.
Meanwhile, the severity of the shutdown is about to intensify. Federal workers are expected to get one more paycheck at the end of this week, reflecting their work through September 30th. And then they won't get paid again until the shutdown ends
On a side note, something unusual happened in the House on Tuesday. Speaker Johnson brought his Bible to the House floor and offered a message of hope, reading from Psalm 37:3-7. It says:
"Trust in the Lord and do good, dwell in the land and enjoy safe pasture. Take delight in the lord and he will give you the desires of your heart. Commit your way to the Lord; trust in Him and He will do this: He will make your righteous reward shine like the dawn, your vindication like the noonday sun."
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