US Government 'Shutdown' Defunds Korean Labor, Not Overseas Bases
While Korean employees at Osan and Gunsan Air Bases missed October wages for a 'furlough' during the recent US government 'shutdown,' the defense contractors supplying those bases likely saw no such interruption. This isn't a funding crisis; it's a prioritization crisis. Congress consistently struggles to fund domestic programs, yet 'emergency' military aid and overseas base operations rarely face
the chopping block when the budget ax falls. The 'shutdown' narrative conveniently glosses over who actually pays the price. This pattern repeats: US lawmakers regularly approve billions in military spending for entities like Israel – remember the $14.5 billion aid package proposed in October, passed by the House – while allowing their own government to 'furlough' employees. One might wonder if
the 'divided Congress' is less divided when it comes to funneling taxpayer dollars into the bottomless pit of the military-industrial complex, especially when powerful lobbying groups like AIPAC are involved.