At midnight on Feb. 9th, 2018 the U.S. government experienced its second shutdown of 2018. This second shutdown was a result of the government’s failure to conjure up a new spending bill after the government’s funding ran out

These two recent government shutdowns magnifies the inefficiencies of governing by both the legislative and executive branch, which ultimately led up to the second shutdown.

The government has officially shut down 18 times since the Congressional Budget Impoundment Control Act in 1976, which modified the modern process that Congress uses to pass budgets and spending bills took effect in 1976.

Even with one party controlling both branches of government, Republicans still could not find a deal with their own party when all that was needed was a simple majority. Our lawmakers were unable to come up with a bipartisan compromise, because neither side seem to mind too much of another shutdown to push forward their own agenda.

Then on the other side of the aisle some Democrats will not vote on budgets unless they have a solution for the DACA program.

President Donald Trump even rooted for it during a White House meeting on gang violence on Feb 2., “I’d love to see a shutdown.”

Trump refuses to pass any budget plan that does not include a slice for his Mexican border wall.

In the meantime, when the government does shut down, lawmakers still get paid in the meantime while our troops will not. Federal employees will be put on furlough and parks will get closed.

At the moment it is bending over the Americans that desperately need this government to function in order to survive. In a government shutdown, the federal employee gets divided into two different sections listed as essential and nonessential. Nonessential employees are put on furlough, while the essentials have to go to work unpaid.

An article published by Vox on Jan 22. 2018, the day of last government shutdown prior to 2018, lays out how people are most effected by a government from experiencing the shutdown of 2013.

“In the 2013 shutdown, the effects of the furloughs and other shutdowns in government activity included: Tax refunds totaling almost $4 billion were delayed, the women, infants, and children nutrition programs went unfunded, (and) federal research activities at the National Institutes of Health (which lost about three-quarters of its employees).”

People’s welfare a grossly effected by a government shutdown. Its a trickle down effect that has a lot unforeseen consequences.

The Vox article continues, “Government shutdowns are not just inconvenience, but they can be disasters. Each time they decided to let the government to shutdown, lawmakers roll the dice on our public’s health and safety. That it all can be prevented if they just do their jobs properly.”

Other things that make this country beautiful like “the national parks shut down, resulting in $500 million in lost consumer spending from tourism,” those investments in our wildlife effects the efforts that are put in preserving our land for future generations.

The people who deserve to have computations from the government gets delayed.

Nearly 20,000 Veterans’ disability applications per week slowed and were not evaluated during the shutdown of 2013.

The government shutdown impended the life of their citizens and takes away from potential opportunities available to us.

How is it fair that not just hundreds of thousands to millions of Americans are not only affected by this, but have their lives come to a stop due to this indicate government. There is something morally wrong when soldiers have to go to work during a shutdown and not get paid meanwhile our lawmakers still get paid for not doing their job. The government shutdown seems to hurt everyone else except the lawmakers, whose job is ultimately to keep it running.

This disgusting reality is allowed, due to Article 1 Section 6 of the Constitution in which allows lawmakers to continue getting paid during shutdowns. In due of these lawmakers to be less egret in roles and less aggressive in their abilities to pass laws.

There should be a new reforms to make budget measures pass more effectively and efficiently. If lawmakers do not do their job, they should not get their pay. We as a people should call upon for more reforms and push for more change in our government.