Ep. 24 - Why Congress Keeps Shutting the Government Down | Everyone Knows

Washington shut the government down twice in one year. Different fights. Same weapon. And they like it that way.

Two Shutdowns, One Weapon, and the Bill Nobody Will Pass | Everyone Knows Ep. 24

Everyone Knows | Episode 24 | Starborne Studios

Since the current budget year began last October, some part of the federal government has gone without regular funding for 161 days. That is 44 percent of the year. Two separate shutdowns, one of them the longest in American history and the other the longest ever for a single department. Full year funding was not finished until June 10. And the next deadline is already here on September 30. Brian walks through how a country that pays for a government ended up not having one for nearly half the year, and why the people responsible are in no hurry to fix it.

Three parts. All of them matter.

FIRST, the clock nobody stopped. The numbers behind the last twelve months and the cliff sitting in front of us. The 43 day shutdown last fall. The 76 day shutdown over the winter that hit Homeland Security hardest. A budget that was not settled until we were more than halfway through the budget year. Then the House passing a short term funding bill 220 to 205 with six Democrats crossing over, a bill that pushes the next fight to December 4, which lands conveniently after the November midterms. And then both chambers left town for five weeks.

SECOND, two fights, one weapon. Most people think both shutdowns were about the same thing. They were not. The fall shutdown was about your health insurance, specifically the enhanced Obamacare subsidies that were about to expire. Eight Democrats eventually broke ranks to reopen the government in exchange for a promise of a vote. The vote happened. It failed. The subsidies expired anyway, average premiums rose about 30 percent, and what people actually pay out of pocket jumped from roughly 113 dollars a month to roughly 178. The winter shutdown was a completely different fight, over the border and immigration funding, and it dragged 76 days. Same weapon. Two different wars.

THIRD, the part hiding in plain sight. There is something sitting on a shelf in Washington right now that would end this entire cycle permanently. It is written. It has a bill number. Both parties know it exists and neither one will touch it, and the reason why is the real story. You will have to listen to the end for that one.

Everyone Knows is about the stories the rest of them file down until there is nothing left. No talking points. No party script. If you're tired of the spin, you're in the right place.

ABOUT EVERYONE KNOWS:

Everyone Knows is an independent podcast hosted by Brian Bullock — author, storyteller, and founder of Starborne Studios. Every episode breaks down the stories that matter using one simple framework — who benefits, who gets hurt, why now, and what happens next. No cable news theatrics. No party line. Just a straight read on what's actually going on and what it means for regular people. New episodes every week. Subscribe so you don't miss one.

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