RT
On the 25th of January 2019, President Donald Trump ended the longest Government Shutdown in history after 35 days. However, he has made it clear that this is only temporary, if a deal cannot be reached by the 15th of February, he will shut down the government again.
During the shutdown many services, such as museums, were not longer functioning and thousands of people didn’t receive pay. This article will examine whether a shutdown is necessary to solve this problem.
Trump’s border wall is one of the most controversial issues in American politics, with heated opinions on both sides on the debate. With Republicans intent on raising at least five billion dollars to fund the wall and Democrats saying they won’t provide any funding, negotiations have often been tense. The government shutdown was a negotiating tactic used by Trump, with the intention of forcing the Democrats to back down and fund the wall.
However, as many frustrated Americans blamed Trump, rather than the Democrats, for the shutdown Trump was forced to re-open government. This left his supporter base weakened, with long-time supporters like Ann Coulter turning against him.
This has led many people to speculate that Trump’s next move could be funding the wall by declaring a national emergency. Now that we know a little about the government shutdown we can answer whether it was necessary.
The government shutdown left thousands of workers unpaid, however, with the benefit of hindsight we can now look back over these events to determine if they were necessary.
The President was attempting to use the shutdown to force Democrats to give him the money for the border wall. It was hoped that the added pressure of the wages of workers would motivate the House to reach a deal that would re-open the government. But was it necessary? Well, the answer to that question depends on which side of politics you support. The Democrats would argue that debate on the wall would have continued without the shutdown and therefore it was an unnecessary action. Republicans would argue that the Democrats wouldn’t be open to making a deal without the pressure of the shutdown.
However, based on the lack of a deal and the loss of key media supporters, it’s hard to view the shutdown as anything but a political mistake. Now, with a portion of his support base upset over the shutdown, Trump will have to use his smooth-talking talent, honed through many years of reality tv, to mend the cracks before the next election.
This article has discussed the recent United States government shutdown. First, we looked at a brief history of how the shutdown unfolded. Then, we tried to answer whether the shutdown was necessary.
Like so many political issues, the answer to this question depends on whether you identify as a Republican or Democrat supporter.
However, only by conducting a through, unbiased review of key political events like the shutdown can we engage in a meaningful discussion about America’s future.
