Shutdown

BY STEPHEN LEE /November 1, 2005

 ‘No money shall be drawn from the Treasury but in consequence of Appropriations made by Law . . .’ Article I, Section 9 of the US Constitution

A disastrous fiscal crisis looms when the federal  government is shut down after President Bartlett and Republican Speaker of the House Haffley disagree over budget reductions that would trim many social programs. Initially, Haffley and the Republicans appear to be winning the war for public opinion; polls reveal that the public blames the President for the conflict, and Time gives Haffley the magazine cover with the caption "The New Boss?" While Vice President Russell volunteers to negotiate with Senate Majority Leader Royce and Bartlett’s Special Assistants Leo, Josh, CJ, and Toby send the staff home, everyone remains uneasy over the President’s refusal to compromise.

A government shutdown can happen when a legislative body cannot agree on a budget financing government programs for a pending fiscal year; this would include taking into account the threat of veto by the executive. In the absence of appropriated funds, the government discontinues providing non-essential services. A federal government shutdown causes a large number of civilian federal employees to be furloughed. The exact details of which government functions would stop during a shutdown is determined by the Office of Management and Budget, however, some specific aspects have applied to all shutdowns in the past. Among these is the closure of national parks and passport offices. "Emergency personnel" continue to be employed, including the military, border agents, doctors and nurses working in federal hospitals, and air traffic controllers. These personnel are not furloughed, but may not be paid as scheduled. Members of Congress continue to be paid, because their pay cannot be altered except by direct law. Mail delivery is not affected as it is self-funded.

There have been 17 government shutdowns since 1976, and some observers feel the heated Oval Office meeting between President Bartlett and Speaker Haffley was modeled on a real-life meeting under similar circumstances between President Bill Clinton and Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich which shut the government down for 21 days in 1995.  The most recent shutdown occurred in 2013 and lasted 17 days when President Obama refused to back down from Republican’s threats to defund the Affordable Healthcare Act in the House annual budget bill.