For a lot of Americans outside the DC bubble, you’d be forgiven for not even noticing that the federal government remains in a shutdown state. Essential federal workers have continued on the job without receiving paychecks since October 1, putting a strain on many households. Thousands of others have simply been furloughed for just shy of a month now, not working at their day job or receiving a paycheck.
The nation’s largest federal workers’ union is now breaking ranks and calling on Democrats to end the government shutdown by backing a clean funding bill alongside Republicans.
The American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE), which represents more than 800,000 federal workers, released a statement urging lawmakers to “pass a clean continuing resolution and end this shutdown today.” The move is a major rebuke to Democratic leaders who have refused to support the GOP’s clean funding plan unless additional policy demands are included.
AFGE President Everett Kelley said in a statement that the shutdown has left public servants suffering while Washington bickers. “When the folks who serve this country are standing in line for food banks after missing a second paycheck, they’re not looking for a partisan win,” Kelley said. “They’re looking for the wages they earned.”
Federal Workers Feeling the Pain
The effects of the shutdown are being felt across the country. TSA agents, Social Security workers, and air traffic controllers are either working without pay or have been sent home entirely. Families are falling behind on bills, and local food banks report an increase in visits from furloughed workers.
Republicans in the House already passed a clean continuing resolution to fund the government at current levels and reopen agencies immediately. The Senate has refused to take it up, with Democrats insisting on tying the measure to unrelated spending priorities, like ensuring illegal aliens continue getting healthcare subsidies.
Democrats Under Fire
For weeks, Democrats have attempted to paint Republicans as the cause of the shutdown, hoping they could damage President Trump. That argument immediately collapsed under pressure from the federal workforce itself. The union’s statement makes clear that Democrats need to get back to work, open the government, and then negotiate other demands.
With hundreds of thousands of federal workers missing paychecks, Democrats are being accused of holding out for leverage while ordinary families struggle to buy groceries and pay rent. Republicans have already provided a straightforward way to reopen the government, and now even the unions are being forced to admit it.
Mounting Pressure
The pressure is growing for Democrats to act. AFGE rarely sides publicly with Republicans, making this appeal all the more significant. It’s a warning that the shutdown is backfiring on the left politically and economically.
Every day the standoff continues, federal employees suffer the most. The question now is whether Senate Democrats will listen to their own allies and vote to put paychecks and government services ahead of politics.
In short, the shutdown has backfired on Democrats when even their own union backers are begging them for mercy.