Shutdown squeezing Alabama city built on federal spending

Once known for its cotton trade and watercress farms, Huntsville, Alabama, is now the ultimate government town: About 70 federal agencies are located at the Army's 38,000-acre Redstone Arsenal. More than half of the area's economy is tied to Washington spending.

As the government shutdown drags into a third week, people and businesses that rely on that federal largesse for their livelihood are showing the strain.

Empty parking lots and darkened offices at NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center on Redstone have translated into vacant hotel rooms because out-of-town government workers and contractors aren't coming. Restaurants frequented by federal workers who travel on government spending accounts are struggling, too.

Workers monitor research operations aboard the International Space Station from NASA's Payload Operations Integration Center in Huntsville, Ala., Wednesday, Jan. 9, 2019. Of the roughly 800,000 federal employees facing deferred pay, more than half are deemed essential. (AP PhotoDavid Goldman)

Transportation Security Administration employees working without pay at the city's airport say they are spending their own money to bring in quiches and breakfast rolls as a morale booster. Moms are sharing tips online about free entertainment and buying food in bulk to save a few bucks. The largest credit union has already provided hundreds of bridge loans for struggling families.

"It's a fog with no end in sight," said Michael Northern, an executive with a small company that runs three restaurants outside a main arsenal gate. The lunch crowd is still OK, he said, but dinner dollars have dried up, and business is off at least 35 percent.

"People are just going home and nesting, trying to conserve resources," said Northern, vice president of WJP Restaurant Group. "Imagine being in that posture and hearing Donald Trump say, 'It could be a year.'"

Sabine Cool, background, cooks potatoes as her husband, Jeff, prepares for a lunch crowd outside their German-style food truck that operates in the heart of a NASA complex in Huntsville, Ala., Wednesday, Jan. 9, 2019. The couple say they normally do between $800-$1,000 per day, but since the partial government shutdown began, they're averaging $300-$400. (AP PhotoDavid Goldman)

The closure persists because the president and congressional Democrats can't agree on $5.7 billion in funding for a border wall, which Trump touts as vital to U.S. security and critics see as pointless and immoral.

The jobs of some 800,000 workers hang in the balance. A little more than half are still working without pay, and hundreds of thousands will miss paychecks Friday.

Economic statistics lag real-time events, so it's hard to gauge the effects of a shutdown that's been going on less than a month. But in Huntsville, a city of about 195,000 people where more than 5,000 workers are affected, frustration and worry are building.

Sabine, left, and Jeff Cool watch as fellow food trucks pull into a lot all vying for a smaller-than-normal lunch crowd outside a NASA complex in Huntsville, Ala., Wednesday, Jan. 9, 2019. Today, people and businesses which rely on that federal largesse for their livelihood are showing the strain of a government shutdown. "It kind of hurt a little bit; we're just rolling with the punches," Jeff Cool said. (AP PhotoDavid Goldman)

Located at the base of a mountain in the lush Tennessee Valley, Huntsville was just another Alabama city until the government decided to build rockets at Redstone Arsenal at the dawn of the space race. The influx of people and federal dollars that arrived with NASA transformed the city into a technical and engineering hub that only grew as Army missile and materiel programs expanded on the base.

That heavy reliance on federal spending has Huntsville residents wondering what will come next.

Jack Lyons, a lifelong space geek who thought he'd hit the jackpot when he got a job as a contractor working on massive rocket test stands for NASA, is spending the furlough on his small side business making props for marching bands. A solid Republican voter until 2016, when he couldn't bring himself to vote for Trump, he's frustrated and saddened by what's going on in Washington.

Jack Lyons, a contractor working on massive rocket test stands for NASA, stands in his workshop while spending the furlough on his small side business making props for marching bands, in Madison, Ala., Tuesday, Jan. 8, 2019. "They're trying to use people as bargaining chips, and it just isn't right," Lyons said. Unlike civil service workers who expect to eventually get back pay, Lyons doesn't know if he'll ever see a dollar from the shutdown period. (AP PhotoDavid Goldman)

"They're trying to use people as bargaining chips, and it just isn't right," Lyons said. Unlike civil service workers who expect to eventually get back pay, Lyons doesn't know if he'll ever see a dollar from the shutdown period.

Just back from maternity leave following the birth of her second child, Katie Barron works at home for a private company not connected to the government, but her husband is a National Weather Service meteorologist forced to work without pay because his job is classified as essential.

They're canceling this Saturday's date night to save a couple of hundred dollars, and the purchase of a new refrigerator is on hold. They've also put off home and car maintenance, but the $450-a-week bill for day care still has to be paid, as do the mortgage and utility bills.

A worker walks through the empty lobby of the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives' National Center for Explosives Training and Research in Huntsville, Ala., Wednesday, Jan. 9, 2019. About 70 federal agencies are located at the Army's sprawling Redstone Arsenal, and more than half the area economy is tied to Washington spending. (AP PhotoDavid Goldman)

"We're a little bit buffered, but our lives are basically based off dual incomes," Barron said.

While Barron frets over the loss of dental and optical insurance because of the shutdown, she said her family has some savings and will be fine for a while. Others are struggling.

Redstone Federal Credit Union already has provided hundreds of low-interest loans of as much as $5,000 each to families affected by the shutdown, with no payments due for 60 days, and it's also letting members skip payments on existing loans for a $35 fee, chief marketing officer Fred Trusty said.

Server Dawn Killoran pulls up the shades as tables sit empty during dinnertime at Rocket City Tavern near numerous federal agencies in Huntsville, Ala., Wednesday, Jan. 9, 2019. Business at the restaurant is off at least 35 percent since the partial federal shutdown began. (AP PhotoDavid Goldman)

"As the days go on, we are seeing more and more traffic head to our branches," he said. The timing of the shutdown couldn't be worse since many families already were stretched thin by holiday spending or starting payments for upcoming summer travel, Trusty said.

Jeff and Sabine Cool, who own a German-style food truck that operates in the heart of the NASA complex, say their income is down about $600 a week since the beginning of the shutdown.

"It kind of hurt a little bit. We're just rolling with the punches," Jeff Cool said Wednesday as he set up tables outside Hildegard's German Wurst Wagon on a bright, windy morning. "I'm glad I'm retired Army and have an additional income, but I feel for the other people."

Katie Barron drinks a cup of coffee while working from home in Madison, Ala., Wednesday, Jan. 9, 2019. Barron frets over the loss of dental and optical insurance because her husband is a National Weather Service meteorologist forced to work without pay because his job is classified as essential. (AP PhotoDavid Goldman)

Cool's sympathy extends to people like Sandra Snell, a TSA officer working without pay at Huntsville International Airport. She hasn't gotten a paycheck since December and wonders what will happen once her savings run out.

The bright spots of the shutdown, she said, are the co-workers who share food and airline passengers who realize that the people checking their identification cards and staffing the X-ray machines are working for free.

"They'll say, 'Thanks for being here.' It helps. It's nice when they realize your value," she said.

A worker monitors research operations aboard the International Space Station from NASA's Payload Operations Integration Center in Huntsville, Ala., Wednesday, Jan. 9, 2019. With parts of the government closed, the jobs of some 800,000 workers hang in the balance. A little more than half are still working without pay, and hundreds of thousands will miss paychecks Friday. (AP PhotoDavid Goldman)

A mural decorates a downtown parking garage in Huntsville, Ala., Wednesday, Jan. 9, 2019. Economic statistics lag real-time events, so it's hard to gauge the effects of a partial government shutdown that's been going on less than a month. But in Huntsville, a city of about 195,000 people where more than 5,000 workers are affected by the closure, frustration and worry are building. (AP PhotoDavid Goldman)

Michael Northern, vice president of WJP Restaurant Group, stands next to an empty table at dinnertime at Rocket City Tavern near numerous federal agencies in Huntsville, Ala., Wednesday, Jan. 9, 2019. "It's a fog with no end in sight," Northern said. The lunch crowd is still OK, he adds, but dinner dollars have dried up and business is off at least 35 percent. "People are just going home and nesting, trying to conserve resources," Northern said. (AP PhotoDavid Goldman)

A parking lot is empty at NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center, which has been impacted by the partial federal government shutdown at the Army's Redstone Arsenal in Huntsville, Ala., Wednesday, Jan. 9, 2019. The influx of people and federal dollars that arrived with NASA transformed the city into a technical and engineering hub that only grew as Army missile programs expanded on the base. (AP PhotoDavid Goldman)

An employee leaves the state operated U.S. Space & Rocket Center which serves as the visitor center for the nearby federally funded NASA Marshall Space Flight Center, in Huntsville, Ala., Tuesday, Jan. 8, 2019. Once known for its cotton trade and watercress farms, Huntsville is the ultimate government town. About 70 federal agencies are located at the Army's sprawling Redstone Arsenal, and more than half the area economy is tied to Washington spending. (AP PhotoDavid Goldman)

A parking lot is empty at NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center, which has been impacted by the partial federal government shutdown at the Army's Redstone Arsenal in Huntsville, Ala., Wednesday, Jan. 9, 2019. The empty parking lots and darkened offices have translated into vacant hotel rooms because out-of-town government workers and contractors just aren't coming. (AP PhotoDavid Goldman)

Workers monitor research operations aboard the International Space Station from NASA's Payload Operations Integration Center in Huntsville, Ala., Wednesday, Jan. 9, 2019. With parts of the government closed, the jobs of some 800,000 workers hang in the balance. A little more than half are still working without pay, and hundreds of thousands will miss paychecks Friday. (AP PhotoDavid Goldman)

Jack Lyons, a contractor working on massive rocket test stands for NASA, welds in his workshop while spending the furlough on his small side business making props for marching bands, in Madison, Ala., Tuesday, Jan. 8, 2019. A solid Republican voter until 2016, when he just couldn't vote for Trump, Lyons is frustrated and saddened by what's going on in Washington. (AP PhotoDavid Goldman)

A worker cleans the floors at NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center, which has been impacted by the partial federal government shutdown at the Army's Redstone Arsenal in Huntsville, Ala., Wednesday, Jan. 9, 2019. Located at the base of a mountain in the lush Tennessee Valley, Huntsville was just another Alabama city until the government decided to build rockets at Redstone Arsenal at the dawn of the space race. (AP PhotoDavid Goldman)

Katie Barron watches a rebroadcast of President Donald Trump's address to the nation on the partial government shutdown as she works from home in Madison, Ala., Wednesday, Jan. 9, 2019. Barron works for a private company not connected to the government but her husband is a National Weather Service meteorologist forced to work without pay because his job is classified as essential. (AP PhotoDavid Goldman)

Mexicn-born lawyer and immigrants' rights activist Cesar Vargas, second from left, speaks to the media during a press conference and rally supporting two furloughed federal workers, National Park Service rangers Kathryn Gilson, fourth from left, and Sean Ghazala, third from right (in blue sweater), Thursday, Jan. 10, 2019, at La Colmena Center in the Staten Island borough of New York. Some union workers joined in support of the furloughed workers as the government shutdown entered it's 20th day. Gilson works at Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge, part of Gateway National Recreation Area and Ghazala works at the African Burial Ground in Lower Manhattan. (AP PhotoKathy Willens)

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — U.S. President Donald Trump said he was considering “winding down” military operations in the Middle East even as the United States is sending three more amphibious assault ships and roughly 2,500 additional Marines to the region.

Trump’s post Friday on social media followed an Iranian threat to attack recreational and tourist sites worldwide and another day of the airstrikes and drone and missile attacks that have engulfed the region.

The mixed messages from the United States came after another climb in oil prices plunged the U.S. stock market, and was followed by a Trump administration announcement it was lifting sanctions on Iranian oil already loaded on ships, a move aimed at wrangling soaring fuel prices.

The 3-week-old war has shown no signs of abating, with Israel saying Iran continued to fire missiles at it early Saturday, while Saudi Arabia said it downed 20 drones in just a couple of hours in the country's eastern region, which is home to major oil installations.

The attacks came a day after Israeli airstrikes hit in Tehran as Iranians celebrated the Persian New Year, known as Nowruz, a normally festive holiday that has been muted by the war.

The U.S. and Israel have offered shifting rationales for the war, from hoping to foment an uprising that topples Iran’s leadership to eliminating its nuclear and missile programs. There have been no public signs of any such uprising and no end to the war in sight.

On social media, Trump said, “We are getting very close to meeting our objectives as we consider winding down our great Military efforts in the Middle East.”

That seemed at odds with his administration’s move to bolster its firepower in the region and request another $200 billion from Congress to fund the war.

The United States is deploying three more amphibious assault ships and roughly 2,500 additional Marines to the Middle East, an official told The Associated Press. Two other U.S. officials confirmed that ships were deploying, without saying where they were headed. All three spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive military operations.

Days earlier the U.S. redirected another group of amphibious assault ships carrying another 2,500 Marines from the Pacific to the Middle East. The Marines will join more than 50,000 U.S. troops already in the region.

Trump has said he has no plans to send ground forces into Iran but also has asserted that he retains all options.

Iran’s top military spokesperson, Gen. Abolfazl Shekarchi, warned Friday that “parks, recreational areas and tourist destinations” worldwide will not be safe for the country’s enemies. The threat renewed concerns that Tehran may revert to using militant attacks beyond the Middle East as a pressure tactic.

Supreme Leader Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei praised Iranians’ steadfastness in the face of war in a written statement read on Iranian television to mark Nowruz. Khamenei has not been seen in public since he became supreme leader following Israeli strikes that killed his father, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, and reportedly wounded him.

With little information coming out of Iran, it was not clear how much damage its arms, nuclear or energy facilities have sustained in the punishing U.S. and Israeli strikes, which began Feb. 28 — or even who was truly in charge of the country. But Iran’s attacks are still choking off oil supplies and raising food and fuel prices far beyond the Middle East.

The Israeli military said early Saturday that it began a wave of strikes targeting Iran-backed Hezbollah militants in Beirut’s southern suburbs.

Smoke was seen rising, fires broke out and loud explosions were heard across parts of central Beirut, hours after the Israeli army renewed evacuation warnings for seven neighborhoods.

Israeli strikes targeting Hezbollah in Lebanon have killed more than 1,000 people and displaced more than 1 million, according to the Lebanese government.

More than 1,300 people have been killed in Iran during the war. In Israel, 15 people have been killed by Iranian missiles and four others have died in the occupied West Bank. At least 13 U.S. military members have been killed.

Brent crude oil, the international standard, has soared during the fighting and was around $106 per barrel, up from roughly $70 before the war.

The newly announced U.S. pause in sanctions applies to Iranian oil loaded on ships as of Friday and is set to end April 19.

The new move does not increase the flow of production, a central factor in the surging prices. Iran has managed to evade U.S. sanctions for years, suggesting that much of what it exports already reaches buyers.

Looking for ways to boost global oil supplies during the Iran war, the Trump administration has previously paused sanctions on certain Russian oil shipments for 30 days, which critics said rewarded Moscow while having only a modest effect on markets.

Price reported from Washington, and Watson from San Diego. AP journalists Collin Binkley in West Palm Beach, Florida and Konstantin Toropin in Washington contributed.

A man prays over the graves of Hezbollah fighters killed, at Al-Hawraa Zaynab Cemetery during Eid al-Fitr in Dahiyeh, Beirut's southern suburbs, Lebanon, Friday, March 20, 2026. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar)

Two women and a child holding an Iranian flag walk toward the Imam Khomeini Grand Mosque to attend Friday prayers in Tehran, Iran, Friday, March 20, 2026. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)

Iranians reach toward the coffins as they follow the funeral procession of Iran's intelligence minister Esmail Khatib and, according to Iranian officials, his wife and daughter, in Tehran, Iran, Friday, March 20, 2026. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)

Iranians follow a truck carrying the coffins of Iran's intelligence minister Esmail Khatib and, according to Iranian officials, his wife and daughter, during a funeral procession in Tehran, Iran, Friday, March 20, 2026. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)