The current partial shutdown of the government is the longest partial shutdown ever recorded and if it continues for a few more days it will be the longest shutdown of any kind.
What began as a budget stalemate in February has become the longest partial shutdown on record, which has frozen funds for the Department of Homeland Security for more than a month. If the shutdown continues after this weekend, it will be longer than any previous shutdown, partial or full.
The longest shutdown was the one Democrats held last September which lasted 42 days. The DHS shutdown has currently been underway for 39 days.
The most obvious result of the shutdown has been the inability to pay TSA agents their salaries. That has resulted in some people calling out and created long lines at airports around the country.
TSA officers missed their first full paychecks in mid-March, leading many to call out of work. Callout rates for TSA officers have exceeded 11% nationally, with rates at some airports passing 40%.
The high call-out rates have led to lines at some airports taking more than four hours. Trump sent ICE agents to airports to help TSA earlier this week. Unlike TSA officers, ICE agents continue to receive paychecks during the partial shutdown as a result of funding from the so-called One Big Beautiful Bill that Trump signed into law last year.
Democrats have been trying to blame those delays on President Trump despite the fact that this is their shutdown. Today, President Trump announced on Truth Social that he plans to bypass the shutdown and pay TSA anyway.
The Radical Left Democrats, and their “Leader,” Cryin’ Chuck Schumer, have made it very clear where they stand, and that is, ON THE SIDE OF CRIMINAL ILLEGAL ALIENS, AND NOT THE AMERICAN PEOPLE. They are refusing to fund Immigration Enforcement unless the Republicans agree to their Open Border Policies, which will never, ever happen again. They almost destroyed our Country, allowing 25 Million People to enter from Prisons, Mental Institutions, and Insane Asylums, those that are Drug Dealers, and thousands of Murderers, many of whom killed more than one person. Because the Democrats have recklessly created a true National Crisis, I am using my authorities under the Law to protect our Great Country, as I always will do! Therefore, I am going to sign an Order instructing the Secretary of Homeland Security, Markwayne Mullin, to immediately pay our TSA Agents in order to address this Emergency Situation, and to quickly stop the Democrat Chaos at the Airports. It is not an easy thing to do, but I am going to do it! I want to thank our hardworking TSA Agents and also, ICE, for the incredible help they have given us at the Airports. I will not allow the Radical Left Democrats to hold our Country hostage any longer. Thank you for your attention to this matter! President DONALD J. TRUMP
President Trump mentions a national crisis but doesn’t specify how his declaration will work.
The details of Mr. Trump’s order were not immediately available, including what authority the White House would cite to make the funds available in the absence of an appropriation by Congress…
Senator John Barrasso of Wyoming, the No. 2 Republican, said that Mr. Trump was “going to repurpose funds,” though he did not explain how. But Mr. Barrasso acknowledged that senators, who have traditionally fought to preserve their power of the purse, “would have preferred to get this done here on the floor of the United States Senate.”
Mr. Thune called Mr. Trump’s announcement a “short-term solution,” suggesting that the negotiations over homeland security spending would continue.
“Obviously we want to fund everything within” the department, he said.
So far none of the stories about this in the national media have gotten clarification about the plan. Presumably that will change later tonight or tomorrow.
We also don’t know how much longer Democrats are going to refuse to fund DHS. Do they want to set a new record by holding out this weekend? Will they lose interest once the pain being caused by their stunt ends. Expect to hear more about this tomorrow.
Editor’s Note: Do you enjoy Hot Air’s conservative reporting that takes on the radical left and woke media? Support our work so that we can continue to bring you the truth.
Join Hot Air VIP and use promo code FIGHT to receive 60% off your membership.
