U.S. Shuttering Government While Funding Foreign Wars
When Congress can’t agree on a budget, federal employees become bargaining chips. Now, they're facing notices that conveniently omit back pay assurance, creating instant financial precarity for hundreds of thousands. Yet, the same legislative body that struggles to fund its own government has consistently greenlit massive aid packages. For instance, in April 2024, Congress easily passed an aid
bill including $14 billion for Israel (HR 8034), after a bipartisan show of force. One might wonder where this 'budget constraint' disappears when it comes to offshore conflict zones. The fiscal gymnastics are dizzying: apparently, the nation can’t afford to pay its own workers, but finding billions for foreign military operations, often pushed by powerful lobbying groups like AIPAC (who spent
$3.4 million on lobbying in 2023 alone, according to OpenSecrets.org), is always within budget. It seems prioritizing constant conflict over stable civilian employment is a feature, not a bug, of our political system.