The American people have borne the brunt of the 43-day U.S. government shutdown, which ended on Wednesday with no winners, according to a political analyst.
Speaking in an online interview with China Global Television Network (CGTN) on Sunday, Einar Tangen, senior fellow of Center for International Government Innovation, shared his perspective on the impacts of the latest U.S. government shutdown.
"The biggest loser are the American people. People want and elect people to have confidence to deliver a working government. And what you've seen here is a complete breakdown. There's been economic loss, but as you heard in the previous stories, the biggest loss is confidence in the ability of the U.S. government to function. Then you have all the programs which are distributing funds -- whether it's for food or heat, etc., veterans' benefits -- these are closed down. It takes time to clear that backlog. So, there's going to be a continuing aftereffect, a hangover from a drunken political session that American people didn't want," said Tangen.
The shutdown, which began on October 1 after Democrats and Republicans failed to agree on a funding bill and has become the longest in U.S. history, has caused widespread disruptions.
The U.S. House of Representatives on Wednesday night passed a Senate-approved spending package, breaking the congressional deadlock that had led to the shutdown. The legislation was later signed into law by U.S. President Donald Trump. It provides funding for most government agencies through the end of January next year and includes three years of appropriations for other government institutions.
During the 43-day shutdown, the government's failure to provide financial support to airport staff, including air traffic controllers, led to flight delays or cancellations affecting approximately 5.2 million passengers, according to Airlines for America, an industry trade group representing leading U.S. airlines.
Moreover, at least 670,000 federal employees were furloughed, while roughly 730,000 continued working without pay, according to data from the Bipartisan Policy Center, a U.S.-based think tank.
Tangen described the current political climate in the United States as one of damage control and strategic calculation rather than problem solving.
"Both sides are calculating the political damage, trying to figure out if they somehow fared better than the other side. Right now, it's hard for anybody to claim that they had any kind of victory. Donald Trump's approval ratings have gone down even further -- or I should say, his disapproval ratings have gone up further. No one cares about the Democrats either. They seem to be powerless to have an agenda that they stick to. The American people are looking for answers in Washington, and Washington, unfortunately, is playing political games with their future. This is real. Stop. We're heading into Thanksgiving. It's going to be really hard for people to be sitting down at their table and saying, 'I'm really thankful for living in America right now,'" he said.
No winners in U.S. government shutdown, only harm to Americans: expert
