MANILA – President Donald Trump and the U.S. Congress failed to meet a midnight Friday deadline (mid-Saturday PH time) to pass a short-term bill to extend federal funding, forcing some government facilities to shutdown.
On late Saturday, January 20, the US Embassy in Manila’s press attache Molly Koscina, announced:
“All routine and emergency consular, Social Security, and U.S. Citizenship and Immigration services at the U.S. Embassy in the Philippines will continue during the lapse in appropriations. Applicants with appointments should appear at their scheduled time.
To make an appointment for services please go to our website at ph.usembassy.gov.”
What happens in U.S. government shutdown?
In shutdowns, non-essential government employees are furloughed, or placed on temporary unpaid leave. Workers deemed essential, including those dealing with public safety and national security, keep working.
They would receive their last paycheck for work up until the shutdown on Friday Jan. 26.
The last shutdown, in October 2013, lasted more than two weeks and more than 800,000 federal employees were furloughed. There is no official tally of how many would be off work this time. Here are some details about what happened in 2013, along with some recent updates from officials:
MILITARY: The Defense Department says a shutdown would not affect the U.S. military’s war in Afghanistan or its operations against Islamist militants in Iraq and Syria. All 1.3 million military personnel on active duty would remain on normal duty status. Civilian personnel in non-essential operations would be furloughed. Defense Secretary Jim Mattis said a sustained funding impasse would cause ships to go without maintenance and aircraft to be grounded.
JUSTICE: The Justice Department has many essential workers. Under its shutdown contingency plan, about 95,000 of the department’s almost 115,000 staff would keep working.
FINANCIAL OVERSIGHT: The stock market-policing Securities and Exchange Commission funds itself by collecting fees from the financial industry, but its budget is set by Congress. The markets watchdog said in a statement on its website that it would remain open for a limited number of days, fully staffed. The S.E.C. said this plan focused “on the market integrity and investor protection components of our mission.”
The Commodity Futures Trading Commission, meanwhile, would have to furlough 95 percent of its employees immediately. An agency spokeswoman said the derivatives regulator could, however, call in additional staff in the event of a financial market emergency.
WHITE HOUSE: More than 1,000 of the 1,715 staff at the White House would be furloughed, the Trump administration said. The president would be provided with enough support to carry out his constitutional duties, including staff needed for a planned trip to the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, administration officials said. However, the decision to go to Davos is now being assessed “day to day” the White House budget director said on Saturday.
NATIONAL PARKS: National parks remain accessible while still following all applicable laws and procedures, according to a spokesperson. Open roads will remain accessible and back country toilets will also remain open. However, services requiring staffing like public information and full service restrooms, will not be operating. Some lodging, restaurants, and other services may be available when provided by concessioners or other entities.
The Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island in New York Harbor are closed as are Independence Hall and the Liberty Bell Center and other historic buildings in Philadelphia’s Independence National Historic Park normally staffed by federal personnel.
National parks were closed in 2013 and it resulted in a loss of 750,000 daily visitors, said the nonprofit National Parks Conservation Association. The National Park Service estimated the shutdown resulted in $500 million in lost visitor spending in areas around the parks and the Smithsonian museums.
WASHINGTON TOURIST SIGHTS: In 2013, popular tourist sites such as the Smithsonian closed, with barricades going up at the Lincoln Memorial, the Library of Congress and the National Archives. The Trump administration does not plan to barricade open-air monuments this time, officials said. The Smithsonian has said its museums could remain open through Monday.
TAXES: The Internal Revenue Service furloughed 90 percent of its staff in 2013, the liberal Center for American Progress said. About $4 billion in tax refunds were delayed as a result, according to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB).
MAIL DELIVERY: Deliveries would continue as usual because the U.S. Postal Service receives no tax dollars for day-to-day operations.
TRAVEL: Air and rail travelers did not feel a big impact in 2013 because security officers and air traffic controllers remained at work. Passport processing continued with some delays.
COURTS: The Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts has said federal courts, including the Supreme Court, could continue to operate normally for about three weeks without additional funding.
HEALTHCARE: In 2013, the Medicare health insurance program for the elderly continued largely without disruption. Hundreds of patients could not enroll in National Institutes of Health clinical trials, according to the OMB. A program at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to track flu outbreaks was temporarily halted in 2013. This time, the CDC will continue its work to track the flu outbreak, an official said.
CHILDREN: Six Head Start education programs in Alabama, Connecticut, Florida, Georgia, Mississippi and South Carolina serving about 6,300 children shut for nine days in 2013, the OMB said.
SOCIAL SECURITY: Social Security and disability checks were issued in 2013 with no change in payment dates and field offices remained open but offered limited services. There were delays in the review process for new applicants.
LOANS: Processing of mortgages and other loans was delayed when lenders could not access government services such as income and Social Security number verification. The Small Business Administration was unable to process about 700 applications for $140 million in loans until the shutdown ended, OMB said.
VETERANS: Most employees at the Department of Veterans Affairs would not be subject to furlough. VA hospitals would remain open and veterans’ benefits would continue, but education assistance and case appeals would be delayed, the department said.
FOOD INSPECTIONS: Department of Agriculture meat inspectors stayed on the job. Agricultural statistical reports ceased publication. The USDA’s website went dark.
ENERGY: The Department of Energy said on Friday that since most of its appropriations are for multiple years, employees should report to work as normal during a shutdown until told otherwise. If there was a prolonged lapse in funding a “limited number” of workers may be placed on furlough.
Finger-pointing hashtags
Republicans and Democrats sought to apportion blame for the deadlock with a battle of social media hashtags.
By the time the deadline had passed without a deal and exhausted senators returned home to bed, #TrumpShutdown was fast becoming the top trending item on Twitter worldwide.
In an early indication of who was being held responsible for the impasse in Washington, at least among users of the social networking site early on Saturday, that hashtag beat competitors including #DemocratShutdown and #GOPShutdown.
“This will be called the #TrumpShutdown,” Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer tweeted after government funding expired. “There is no one who deserves the blame for the position we find ourselves in more than President (Donald) Trump.”
Many who shared the hashtag decried a lack of leadership from the Republican president, in sharp contrast to his self-crafted image as a dealmaker who would make Washington work. (With a report from Reuters)