Skip to content
Search

Latest Stories

Top Stories

Democratic dysfunction comes with $4 billion bill

Federal employees protesting

Furloughed federal employees protest on Capitol Hill in January.

Win McNamee/Getty Images

For those who believe the breakdown of American democracy has no cost beyond the aggravation of the citizenry, consider the figure $4 billion.

That's the minimum, measurable cost to taxpayers of the most recent three partial government shutdowns, according to a bipartisan report released Tuesday by a Senate panel.

Most of that money, $3.7 billion, went to back pay to federal workers who were furloughed during the shutdowns — and did not perform any work during that time. An additional $300 million-plus went for other costs that include extra administrative work and lost revenue.


The investigation covered the most recent three shutdowns: 16 days in October 2013, three days in January 2018 and 35 days from December 2018 to January 2019.

The estimate does not include the cost to the national economy. The Congressional Budget Office estimated last winter's shutdown, the longest in American history, took $11 billion out of the gross domestic product and reduced real GDP growth from 3.5 percent to 3.1 percent.

And investigators were not able to capture the entire cost of the shutdowns because the departments of Defense, Agriculture, Justice and Commerce said they were not able to provide shutdown cost estimates to the Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations.

Sign up for The Fulcrum newsletter

The lost revenue came because the Justice Department, the Treasury, the Securities and Exchange Commission and the Federal Trade Commission were not pursuing as many wrongdoers as normal. (Basic law enforcement operations continued, but some non-urgent prosecutions and civil matters were delayed.)

The report cites a breakdown in the congressional budgeting process that has been intensifying for a decade or more — the result of the partisan gridlock born mainly by divided government — and the subsequent game of political chicken between the White House and Capitol Hill. (While President Barack Obama was in a standoff with a Republican House in 2013, President Trump was at loggerheads with a Congress under GOP control last year.)

The Senate panel's report recommends legislation to prevent a shutdown by automatically extending all appropriations at current levels when budget deadlines pass without a deal, which is called a continuing resolution.

To avoid another shutdown such a so-called CR will have to get through Congress and be signed by Trump before this fiscal year ends Sept. 30, because almost none of the spending bills for the coming year are done. The president and congressional Democrats have not yet settled on the terms for giving themselves an extension to get their budget work done.

Read More

Indoor Air Pollution Causes Millions of Deaths Each Year
pink petaled flowers on green vase

Indoor Air Pollution Causes Millions of Deaths Each Year

After losing my kidney to cancer, I made a disturbing discovery: household air pollution might have contributed to my illness.

According to researchers, plastics in our air and household items could be linked to kidney problems. While I may never identify the exact cause of my cancer, research shows that indoor air pollution is responsible for an estimated three to five million premature deaths worldwide each year. It’s connected to heart disease, stroke, and cancer.

Keep ReadingShow less
Donald Trump standing with Elon Musk and Kid rock
President-elect Donald Trump, Elon Musk and Kid Rock watch a UFC event at Madison Square Garden on Nov. 16.
Chris Unger/Zuffa LLC

The Care and Feeding of a Superpower

The Department of Government Efficiency, DOGE, led by an unelected billionaire and supported by the Donald Trump administration, continues its bulldozer approach to our federal government. As we careen forward, an essential food for thought is an awareness of the global and historical perspectives that underscore how our current leaders' strategies align with a playbook for the final chapter of previous global powers.

When we think of global dominance, we often think of military strength and the size of a superpower’s budget. What we think less of is the importance of perception or the significance of the cultural aspects of power. The USAID spreads the impression of a peaceful and protective United States, dispersing resources and building a global community with the US at the helm. President Kennedy began the USAID in 1961 with an Executive order. Research shows that USAID has continuously had bipartisan support and a tremendous impact, makes up less than 1 percent of our budget, and is a major player within the United Nations Developmental Programme.

Keep ReadingShow less
Trump’s cuts at the FAA could underscore the risks of shrinking government
white passenger plane on airport during daytime

Trump’s cuts at the FAA could underscore the risks of shrinking government

WASHINGTON – After recent layoffs of employees at the Federal Aviation Administration and a string of aviation incidents, passengers and experts expressed concerns that U.S. airlines’ excellent safety record could be at risk.

About 400 probationary workers were removed from the FAA beginning on February 14, just weeks after the DCA midair collision on January 29 that left 67 dead. On February 17, at least 18 people were injured when a Delta Airlines flight from Minneapolis crash-landed upside down on a runway at Toronto Pearson International Airport.

Keep ReadingShow less
Congress Bill Spotlight: Repealing Trump's National Energy Emergency

White smoke pouring out of the chimneys of the power plant.

Getty Images, Eric Yang

Congress Bill Spotlight: Repealing Trump's National Energy Emergency

The Fulcrum introduces Congress Bill Spotlight, a weekly report by Jesse Rifkin, focusing on the noteworthy legislation of the thousands introduced in Congress. Rifkin has written about Congress for years, and now he's dissecting the most interesting bills you need to know about, but that often don't get the right news coverage.

President Donald Trump has labeled everyone from Hillary Clinton to Jeb Bush as “low energy,” but what about his executive order on the subject?

Keep ReadingShow less