Hey, Republicans. The sky will not fall if there’s a government shutdown. The government was shut down six times during Ronald Reagan’s presidency. Over 20 times since 1974. Yet, recent presidents have avoided it like the plague.
The nation survived, Reagan won massive landslides, and, in the end, the public didn’t give a damn despite all the media-Democratic Party hype at the time.
The bureaucrats wound up getting their money. Social Security checks and Medicare payments continued without a hitch. So did veterans’ benefits. The active military was unaffected.
That is, truly essential government services were funded because they are specifically excluded from government shutdowns. Indeed, taxes keep rolling into the government’s treasury. That never shuts down. There is plenty of revenue for basic government operations.
But a shutdown does draw a line on…
