Reminder: Not Much Shuts Down In A "Government Shutdown"

The latest political drama in Washington surrounds the fact that, absent a continuing resolution by Congress allocating government funding, the federal government will run out of allocated funds on April 28. Starting the next day, there would be a partial government shutdown.

Many do their best to paint this as an apocalyptic scenario. The name “government shutdown” itself sounds like a dreadful state of anarchy, in which laws are suspended and civilization is on the brink of collapse. But the reality is much less exciting—government functions deemed to be “essential” carry on as usual, which means that, according to some estimates, only 17% of the federal government actually shuts down in a government shutdown. For the remaining 83%, it’s largely business as usual.

This CNN piece, entitled “You’re Going To Feel the Effects of a Government Shutdown”, is instructive, though not for the reason the author obviously wants it to be. He claims in the intro to list seven ways a partial shutdown would impact everyday life, but upon actually reading the article, one discovers that three of the seven are actually examples of how business will continue as usual. Mail will still be delivered. Soldiers will still be paid and on the job. Taxes will still be collected. And Social Security checks will still be mailed.

In reality, the effects on ordinary Americans will be small. Gun permits will take longer to process, and if you’re a nonessential federal employee, you’ll have a few days of unpaid leave. National parks and museums will be closed, which will cause the biggest outcry, but overall life will go on. There will be no sudden earthquakes, eclipses, or zombie outbreaks.

If anything, as Erick Erickson noted, maybe it will remind people just how little they rely on the federal government to run their daily lives. Is a shutdown the most desirable outcome? No. But it could still serve a useful purpose.