The unsung heroes of the closure

For a month, Americans followed an intensive course on the theme "Everything the government does and does it." The government employees that many Americans may have already scorned are those who inspect food, fly planes, process tax refunds, fight criminals, and so on.

FBI director Christopher A. Wray told his staff in a video:

Wray is an example of the compbadionate and ambitious leadership that is sorely lacking in the White House. His message contrasted with the almost insane comments of the administration officials, who highlighted the suffering of the people.

When you think about it, it's remarkable that government employees came forward – spending money on gas or public transit and, in many cases, on child care – when they were not there. paid. This should inspire admiration but also indignation.

And that's what it did. Many Americans have begun to ask how in the world we could force employees to work while the government has no obligation to pay them. (The technical answer: the 1947 Taft-Hartley Act prohibits the strike of federal employees.) Democrats would be well advised to insist on banning future closures (by providing for an automatic resolution in case of abandonment of budget funding) or protecting public servants be disciplined if they do not show up in a stop.

In the end, the determination of government employees to suspend their services – within the Internal Revenue Service and at airports in particular – forced the hand of the president. La Poste said: "In the end, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) Said that growing public concern over the economic impact of the closure has deterred politicians. to take a position. "With the public's feeling, you can do anything," she said. "And without the actions of government employees, public sentiment could never have been so dramatic in the face of President Trump and the closure.

In the future, politicians and voters would be well advised to keep several lessons in mind.

First, government employees are ordinary Americans and not pampered elites who manage to deflate and live high on pork. They deserve respect and protection from new difficulties badociated with closure.

Second, the "deep state" – the conspiratorial fantasy of a cabal of leftist activists across the government – becomes even more ridiculous than it otherwise would be. when you see the faces and learn the identity of the real government employees. They are neither activists nor political fanatics; In fact, by working for the government, they give up some political rights (in accordance with the Hatch Act and the government's ethical rules). Trump's caricature accusations of deep statehood and sabotage by bureaucrats should be denounced for what they are: total nonsense.

Third, the anti-government anti-government movement of the Republicans is built on a lie, that the government is not good ("the government is the problem") and that if we get rid of it, we will do better. In the real world, people like the services provided by the government (from national parks to safe air travel to food and medicine safety) and depend on the good functioning of the government. They rightly want a better, more efficient and responsive government, but they do not want to return to the pre-New Deal era or even the pre-Big Society era. If Republicans think so bad about government and government employees, they should find another kind of job and let the hard work of reform to those who think the government has the ability to help ordinary people.

We were reminded that careless, ignorant and ignorant people were at the White House and in Trump's Cabinet. They are the ones who endanger our security and prosperity. The people doing the daily work of the government are not the problem. In fact, in the case of closure, they may have been the solution to the colossal errors of judgment and oversight of the administration.

Read more:

The post's point of view: the closure proved Trump's flagrant inability to lead

Karen Tumulty: This is the biggest mistake of the Trump presidency

Max Stier: We must put an end to this horrible stop. But this is not enough.

Kathleen Parker: The Trump team lets people eat the right time

Jennifer Rubin: Republicans – and the media – should re-examine their badumptions