Hey, most of the federal teat-suckers have two kidneys, right? If money is *that *tight, they can sell one of them! #MAGA!
:rolleyes::rolleyes::rolleyes::rolleyes::rolleyes::rolleyes::rolleyes::rolleyes::rolleyes::rolleyes:
(raising a few eyerolls for ya…)
President Trump, solving the kidney donation shortage too 
Gah. The Christian Right. Is God love or what?
If you want a good laugh, Google “Republican Jesus” and check out what comes up.
“And he said unto them, sorry, I can’t help the blind see again - that’s a pre-existing condition. Not covered.”
Suffer the little children.
Most of them aren’t in DC. Most of them are all across the country. Among them are the staff who keep all the federal courts running, like the court reporters I proofread transcripts for, who’ve told me their last paycheck, scraped up from repurposed court fees, will be on the 25th. Then the federal judiciary will grind to a near-halt. No big deal, you say? There’s a helluva lot of civil litigation that’s going to be impacted, and a helluva lot of large commercial and industrial companies who are going to see their ability to get through crucial litigation affected, and they are not going to be happy.
There’s also a whole lot of people who depend on federal employees’ wages and salaries to keep the family fed and a roof over their heads, and multiple small and medium sized businesses who depend on those employees’ patronage to keep their own business going.
Big and small and in between, those businesses sure as hell aren’t wholly or primarily owned and staffed by Democrats.
Not yet.
One: Federal employees are not overpaid. Federal employees are typically paid less than private sector workers with the same education and experience.
Two: They do not all work in DC. They are all over the country. The federal government is, after all, the national government, not just a bunch of patronage jobs in the capital.
Three: There are something like five federal contract workers for every government employee. Some of them are paid pretty well, but not all. That’s a big chunk of the economy that just had the rug pulled out from under them.
Four: The services the government pays for, whether government employees or contractors, are often things the private sector can’t do and shouldn’t try to do. Those functions will disappear. Some of them, like the spy company Ed Snowden worked for, we probably won’t miss so much. Some we really will.
Five: Beyond all this there is government spending on benefits, that subsidizes low private sector wages. Food stamps, Medicaid, Earned Income Credit–all these underwrite private business that underpay their employees.
If the GOP don’t chicken out, this will be economically contractionary, on an awesome scale. This is fiscal policy that could have a directly destructive level of effect on the economy equivalent to an austere monetary policy. This is directly creating a high level of unemployment and a depression.
The backlash against the GOP is going to be so enormous, that in order to survive, they will have to win a civil war, and they will have to kill several of us for every one of them. What do you think all those memes about arming the common white man with military rifles were for? What do you think keeping bump stocks legal has been for? They will lose unless they can organize an army and outshoot disgruntled federal employees and contractors.
The Democrats refuse to give in to Trump’s behavior. Trump and young Stephen Miller are digging in. Your party’s best hope is that conservative Republicans turn on Trump; restart the government; send Miller packing; and probably impeach Trump just to be sure. Failing that, we are over the edge. There will be blood. By summer, the conservative’s movement only hope may be that you have enough of the young snots who want to be Omar Mateen or Anders Behring Breivik on your side, and that anyone can herd those cats.
LOL. You have a very vivid imagination. I didn’t think anything would top the prediction about half the grocery stores going out of business, but hats off to you, you’ve done it.
I’m sorry, that post was really two different things: facts and conclusions. And I regret using “survive” metaphorically while segueing into a discussion of civil war.
But yes, short of resorting to active suppression, the GOP are in a world of electoral hurt.
“electoral hurt” I can live with. That’s a substantial improvement over having to “win a civil war”, “kill several of us for every one of them”, and “outshoot disgruntled federal employees and contractors.”
Uh, perhaps a bit of perspective. I know Trump is bad and all that, but SNAP recipients won’t riot because their debit cards stop working. Any more than people rioted in similar situations before. Like the 1930s. Or wide swathes of America before SNAP started up. Lots of bad things will happen as a result of this shutdown, but SNAP riots won’t be part of them.
BTW, the OP forgot something. This shutdown can’t last for years. On Oct 1 ALL the federal spending sunsets. I don’t think even the Trumplicans will relish not paying the military…
or losing the federal money that flows to the red states.
Oh, there is another pressure point on the economy. Airline pilots have to get their certs renewed every 12 months. How long will airlines continue to function while losing 8% of their pilots every month from now on?
That’s all I’m asking for: a bit of perspective.
I saw the IRS has ~6,000 folks in Ogden Utah who are all out of work. Maybe Ditka knows a few of them? That’s also a very red district for Congress. Romney got 77% there. Trump only got 50% due to the 3rd party guy.
Not a one of them. I try to not associate with publicans.
Tweet of the day, if you’re in the mood for levity in this situation.
Wow. Dennis Miller, look out! Republicans got levity!
and now they are forced to go to work without pay
They could always quit, and go find a new job doing something productive.
I’m sure some will quit for a better job. But it’s not like you snap your fingers and find another job in a week or 2 unless you get very lucky. Meanwhile all the bills still need to be paid.