Why Republicans Want To Shut Government - Business Insider
Because the first parts of the government that will be shut down are the parts of the government that the Tea Party extremists say they hate!
Specifically:
- The Environmental Protection Agency. The Tea Party extremists don't care about the environment and hate the organization dedicated to protecting it. So the fact that the EPA will have to furlough all but 1,069 of its 16,200 workers is great news to them. (Rebecca Ballhaus of the Wall Street Journal).
- The National Labor Relations Board. The Tea Party extremists hate the NLRB, which tries to make sure that the country's workers are treated fairly. So it's presumably awesome that the NLRB will furlough all but 11 of its 1,611 staffers. (WSJ)
- Food stamps for Women, Infants, and Children. The Tea Party extremists hate food stamps. So they'll be happy a special federal "WIC" food stamps program will be shut down. (Some bad news for Tea Party folks here, though. The broader food stamps program will continue.) (USA Today)
- The Commodities Futures Trading Commission. The Tea Party extremists don't think we should have industry rules or regulators, so the fact that only 8 of the CFTC's 650 workers will come to work and get paid after the shutdown is downright exciting. (WSJ)
- National parks and museums will close. The Tea Party extremists don't care about nature. And museums are for elitists. (WSJ)
- Internal Revenue Service audits. The Tea Party extremists hate, hate, hate the IRS. So they'll be pleased that annoying IRS bureaucrats won't be able to hassle free people and confiscate more money from them. Unfortunately, they'll still owe taxes. And the IRS will still exist.
- The Census Bureau will stop collecting data. Who needs data? (WSJ)
- Applications for small-business loans won't be processed. The Tea Party extremists don't think the government should make small-business loans. (WSJ)
And so on...
Links available at the site.
What won't be shut down during the government shutdown:
- Federal air traffic controllers will continue to monitor take offs and landings;
- The TSA will still be screening passengers in US airports;
- The US military will stay on duty and many credit unions and banks will cover their Oct. 15 paychecks if they are delayed;
- Embassies and consulates overseas will continue to provide services to American citizens;
- The mail will continue to be delivered;
- Federal courts will continue to operate;
- The US Supreme Court will continue to operate as normal when it resumes on October 7;
- Taxes will continue to be collected;
- Sales taxes will continue to be collected
- Garbage will continue to be collected;
- Visa services for people traveling to the United States will continue to operate;
- US passport applications will continue to be processed normally;
- Green card applications will continue to be processed normally;
- Social Security and Medicare benefits will continue to operate normally;
- The vast majority of Homeland Security employees will stay on the job;
- The vast majority of Coast Guard employees will stay on the job;
- The vast majority of Border Patrol agents will stay on the job;
- The vast majority of Secret Service personnel and other law enforcement agents and officers will stay on the job;
- Schools will stay open;
- The National Weather Service and the National Hurricane Center will continue to issue natural disaster warnings and track storms;
- The Mars Rover will continue to explore the red planet and the International Space Station will continue to operate;
- The District of Columbia passed a $144m contingency fund on Friday to ensure all its services would continue to operate normally;
- Most services managed by the Department of Veterans Affairs will continue.
http://www.infowars.com/government-shut-down-wont-actually-shut-down-government/
Only 800,000 people will be furloughed out of 2.4 million government employees. That means 1.6 million people will still be going to work when the government "shuts down."
