The damage of the Shutdown

They are your neighbors. They are your friends. They are disproportionately veterans.

They are heroes unsung, and often maligned, our federal employees and contractors, and they do not deserve to be treated this way — to be forced to work without pay.

Most people watching the shutdown do not realize due to reasons of retirement benefits, as well as a simple commitment to public service, honorably discharged and retired members of the U.S. Armed Services tend to constitute the largest percentage of the federal civil service. In other words, those who have been willing to shed their most precious blood for their fellow citizens are now our neighbors wondering how to pay their mortgages and grocery bills.

So when the president brags about a military pay raise and how he “always takes care” of the men and women of our Armed Forces, ask whether he gives a damn when they shift to another form of protecting America.

In fact, some federal employees currently serve in harms way without pay. On Tuesday, January 15, members of the U.S. Coast Guard missed their paychecks, as did nearly all border agents, customs enforcement, and other sentinels of the Department of Homeland Security who stand as the final guardians of our borders against terrorism.

Moreover, the shutdown has impacted the livelihoods of other protectors of public security. This past week, food safety inspectors were ordered back to work without pay. How long do you think the most experienced will stay on the job amidst this tactic of involuntary servitude?

A typical federal worker has been denied an average of $5,000 of pay to this point. In fact, government contract workers – a major destination for retired military personnel – have not only lost a payment, but have been informed that they shall not receive back pay whatsoever, even when the shutdown ends, for the current law does not allow it for non-employees of the federal government.

For American farmers, especially many in Louisiana, the shutdown has compounded concerns about Mr. Trump’s trade war with China. To lessen the losses of his most loyal rural constituency, the President created a $12 billion bailout fund, yet due to the shutdown, operations have frozen with potential payments indefinitely delayed.

Following law enforcement and first responders, farmers are next in line to have served in our military. On their heels are postal workers.

These public servants are not just our neighbors; they are our heroes.

Very soon, foreclosures will hit neighborhoods across New Orleans and the nation. When these federal workers put their military medals of valor up for sale to stay in their homes, will Donald Trump get the message?

This article originally published in the January 21, 2019 print edition of The Louisiana Weekly newspaper.