Will Republicans end their idle threats, and finally deliver their long-promised government shutdown?

Photo above - America's most famous White House chef, Andre Rush. He is a combat veteran, and has a college degree in business management, something your own senator or congressperson probably couldn't say. Andre retired in 2018, after serving 4 presidents.

March 14th. That’s the day the US government could shut down if there’s no progress on ANOTHER interim funding compromise. Congress gave Biden one in December. Why shouldn’t they just punt this time as well, and do the same for Trump?

Because it's a dereliction of duty. Congress is supposed to pass the federal budget by October 1st each year. They didn’t do that (again) in 2024. In fact, congress has failed to meet it’s budget obligation in 30 of the past 47 years. (see link below). Actual shutdowns are rarer. Next Friday would be the 4th in recent memory, if it happens.

Why all the drama? Because every senator or house member is scrambling, pulling deals, and hiding earmarks to keep deficit spending money flowing to their home states.

I’m going to do some simple math here. If you’re late on your homework (the budget) 60% of the time you should flunk (30 wrong answers out of 47). But we voters are a forgiving bunch. We keep reelecting most incumbents overwhelmingly, no matter how inept they are.

And polls show voters like it this way. People overwhelming believe their own senators are doing a terrific job, and that it's the buffoons from the other 49 states who are ruining it for everyone. See the problem here? We have met the enemy, and he is us.

This time it’s DEMOCRATS who are threatening a shutdown, not republicans. Flip the script!! Trump may want to call their bluff. He’s already struggling to find enough judges to uphold his federal workforce terminations. He might consider standing back while congress authorizes the furlough of “non-essential workers”. “Okay, boys and girls take the next week off. Maybe the entire year, while you look for a new job . . .”

But this isn’t a foolproof way to trim the fat. There was TWO WEEK government shutdown in 2013, because congress was having trouble hiding those earmarks and covering its tracks. And there were a bunch of supposedly ESSENTIAL workers who were told to keep coming to work. Including, but not limited to: the White House calligraphers, who engrave invitations to official state dinners; the White House kitchen staff – 5 chefs and 25 “prep cooks”; the presidential dog-walkers . . .

Do I need to keep going? I can do this all day. I betcha a bunch of government chauffeurs were kept on the job.

If any calligraphers or chauffeurs or chefs hit the bricks already in 2025, I haven’t read about it. So yes, let’s root for a shutdown on March 14, and let the media start reporting on why congressional and white house chefs keep showing up for work. And why a bunch of cube farm federales' are jetting off to the Caribbean to vacation in the balmy weather.

I’m just sayin’ . . .

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