Government shutdown getting more real

Talks over a wall have hit a wall. We are now entering the seventh day of the U.S. government shutdown, with no end in sight. All because President Trump insists that a new spending bill for Homeland Security include $5 billion for a wall along the Mexican border. Trump is living up to his promise that he would be “proud” to shut down the federal government if he doesn’t get his way. But this is not a game. This is not some Trump reality show. Real people are about the feel the impact of lost paychecks, and that won’t be good for our economy. One of the federal agencies impacted most by the government shutdown is the Office of Food and Nutrition Services. This agency oversees the nation’s food stamp program as well as WIC, the supplemental nutrition program for women, infants and children. Food stamp recipients will continue to receive benefits through January, but after that could stop getting government assistance. The WIC program will not see additional federal funding during the shutdown. These programs assist some of the most vulnerable in our society, who will be hurt the most by this unnecessary government shutdown. Our President needs to back down from his wall stance, and pass a spending bill and open the government back up. This is not a game, and is about to become even more real to millions of Americans.