Trump: Shutdown Could Last Months or Years

I'm watching Fox News in my office cafeteria over a late lunch, and Trump is in the process of confirming that he's prepared to keep the government shut down "for months or years" until his border wall funding is approved.

He's probably bluffing, but who knows. This also further gives up a bit of leverage in the negotiations by reaccepting responsibility for the shutdown.

To his credit, he just now acknowledged one of the least discussed issues with a wall - he will have to seize some peoples' land via eminent domain in order to build it.

He wrote "Art of the Deal" Matt, he wrote it!

Wow... I wonder when people will get heavily affected by it if lasts for months.

@horgen: Well, statistics say that 40% of Americans can't cover an emergency $400 expense. I'd guess quite a few can't deal with going without pay for months.

@Serraph105: That's not a few. That's like almost half of America.

5 billion for the wall is a rounding error in the budget. This all seems like a con.

I am aware of that. I was rather thinking about the functions that are more or less gutted while this continues. If this continue another month or two. How many americans will be affected by that?

Essentially how many uses the functions that are no longer provided.

True, but I'm guessing that they don't all work in the public sector so what percentage of the people currently furloughed or working for free and expecting backpay is who's really in question.

Ah! I have no idea on that one. I do know that these shutdowns don't tend to have much in the way of political consequences sooooo, perhaps the answer is, "Not enough" or "Not a ton".

Ultimately though, I just don't know.

I guess if it doesn't have much to say in terms of political consequences, it is a good thing. Though it still sucks.

Well, one could ask how willing are the Democrats to hurt Americans to not make that wall happen.

But Trump will hopefully go the distance and get the wall funded and not give into the Democrats scare tactics

Democrats and Republicans in congress were not the ones who threw a tantrum that, as you say, is hurting Americans. They're actually the ones who put a bill on Trump's desk to prevent that from happening.

Also, I want Trump to keep his promise to make Mexico pay for the wall. So far he has only put forth plans to make Americans pay for it. He's not "going the distance" by forcing it on the American taxpayer, he's only reneging on a promise.

Here is what is going to happen:

1. Government shutdown will result in pay being furloughed or whatever they call it. In short, people won't get payed

2. Shutdown will go on for months, but no one in the government will think to save all this money not being spent on salaries for the salaries they will inevitably have to pay back.

3. One way or another, the shutdown will end.

4. Government will realize they owe ___ months of backpay to hundreds of thousands (millions?) of public employees across the nation and world, and won't have the money.

5 . ????

6. Profit

when people realize they wont get their tax refunds

Trump's a moron who is willing to hurt Americans so that he doesn't look bad. The wall is a stupid idea and the people that want the wall are stupid. It's basically throwing money at stupidity.

Just read that elsewhere. Damn. I think that will end it quickly.

I'd also like to point out that Trump was given a continuing resolution to sign but he didn't. Both chambers gave him something to fund the government and he said NO. He is 100% responsible for the current situation.

We need the 25th amendment asap cause trump is starting to lose it

@HoolaHoopMan: 100% agree. This is fully on Trump.

This is fascinating to watch.

On the one hand, we’ve Trump whose fighting for this solely on the basis of ego. This is about him, not policy, which makes this all the worse as any conviction within Trump that’s based around his ego is going to be far more difficult to defeat than something he backs on ideological principle. He’s not a man of principle. This is very personal to him. He fails at this, he fails as a man of his word.

On the other, you have the Democrats who aren’t going to budge because to do so would set precedent and send a dangerous message to Trump: that he can succeed by holding the government hostage. They bend on this, there’s no end to what Trump will try.

The majority of Americans are against Trump on this, so the more he drags this out, the more this will hurt him politically. I’m sure his base is loving it though. Do it for months or years Trump, and watch your electoral prospects plummet. I hope the democrats don’t budge.

At least you will get interest on the Tax Refund if they don't pay it after 45 days right?

Sweet! He's now threatening to use emergency powers to build the wall.

https://www.cnn.com/2019/01/04/politics/trump-border-wall-national-emergency-declaration/index.html

Will your government reopen before we leave the European Union?

I think this is the sticking point of why they need to stay resolute (for now). He had something to sign, both chambers passed it, he said no. He's willing to turn this into a shutdown and has been on the record saying he doesn't care.

Can the next democratic president use the current state of our healthcare system to 'declare an emergency' so that we could fund a single payer option through wartime funds?

This is like the episode of the Office where Michael doesn't understand the concept of declaring bankruptcy and thinks he can simply yell it out loud, thereby releasing and absolving him of his financial debt and obligations.

Months or years of more winning ahead.

Ha ha. This is a real life modern equivalent to the 'Nero fiddling while Rome burned' story.

But...wasn't Mexico supposed to pay for the wall?

Yes, and they can still get to pay for it.

Once it´s built.

That's adorable.

@Jacanuk: That's pretty cute. You know damn well Mexico isn't going to pay for our wall.

Oh really, and how is that going to happen!?!? lol

I'd just like to just post a threadly reminder that Trump is on record saying that the president should be fired for government shutdowns.

Hahahaha......thanks for the laugh. I did not know you did comedy...........

5 billion would only cover a fraction of the wall, maybe upgraded fencing.

Just take the 5 billion we give to Israel's wall.

Just build the damn wall already. It will create tons of jobs and people will get paid.

Then when the liberals become president in 2024 or later, they can tear it down then and high five each other.

GOOD!!!! The longer the commie government is out of business, the less commie benefits are going out to the corporate snakes they are in bed with. Shut down the government permanently. I've never seen a bigger commie snake than the US government and the courts who day in and day out figure out new ways to screw over the free market like the commies they are.

I also agree with trump for the most part on this wall. I don't really think it will be so affective, but it will serve as a symbol, a deterrent. Put the wall up. I think the reason for the illegals are due to the mother Fu***ER politicians in the first place. If they legalized and regulated all drugs then there wouldn't be so many illegals because these South American countries wouldn't be such sht holes in the first place. But here we are, and the drug laws sure as hell aren't gioing to change as long as we have these fox news loving decrepit old bast**ds.

With all that said, $20 billion for a wall is chump change. I'd rather trump not get his money so the government stays shut down, but if he ever does, 20 billion is a rounding error compared to the nearly trillion spent on the f-35 program.

@blaznwiipspman1: China, Russia and USA. Wow, three commie nations battling each other for world domination. Trump in this picture is the dumb commie while Putin is the smart one. He is playing both nations while the other two ruin each other through the trade war.

I don't really mind what happens, I just want the government open again. I feel very bad for those who I know personally who are affected by this shutdown.

Americans are split on their feelings toward building a wall along the U.S.–Mexico border, according to a new Hill-HarrisX survey.

Thirty-four percent said a border wall was "the best path for making America safer at its borders," while 31 percent said it was "totally unnecessary and not worth the expense."

Thirty-five percent of respondents said they believed that Americans need border security, but there are "better options" for securing the border.

So roughly 2:1.

For what the tax payers pay for illegal immigrants it is a bargain. Using the figures spent on illegal immigrants to can be any where from 8 walls to 75 walls being built by the money spent on illegals.

"Yes, and they can still get to pay for it.

Once it´s built." -Jacanuk

Mexico won’t even pay for their own shit.

Are you sure it wasn't 211 trillion, so that we could build a gazillion walls instead?

@HoolaHoopMan: But he was only off by 1... 2... 3 zeroes. That's a lot of damn zeroes!

Oh man, if he's mad about what the average tax payer has to pay for every illegal in this country, just wait until he sees how much an ordinary citizen costs us!

This is roughly as accurate as someone saying Warren is native American.

You cannot take the 34% who did not say they are against the wall but for something "better" as being against the wall.

@Jacanuk: agreed. I'm not that strongly for the wall but it's not really a bad thing.

As for as this shutdown goes, I'm guessing this goes into February 2019. Trump knows (or at least people around him know) that if he caves on this, he'll likely kills his chances at re-election. But eventually the public pressure becomes enough that he'll cave anyway.