January 23, 2019
Page 5
Shutdown Impacts Grow
C ontinueD from f ront
Majority Leader Mitch McCon-
nell, R-Kentucky, who refused to
put them up for a vote because
they didn’t include Trump’s wall
funding in full.
“Stop holding federal workers
hostage because Congress won’t
get him funding for an ineffective
and expensive border wall that he
promised that Mexico was sup-
posed to pay for,” Bomanici said.
Wyden said the shutdown “isn’t
making American great,” but rath-
er is “making American wait for
Donald Trump to come to his sens-
es and finally re-open the govern-
ment.”
Blumenauer urged Trump to
“stop this charade” and called
the government work stoppage
“mind-boggling.”
Bonamici said she’s heard sto-
ries from a Transportation Security
Administration worker who had to
sell his plasma just to pay his bills
and a law enforcement officer who
narrowly evaded eviction for lack
of rent money.
More than 500 U.S. Coast Guard
members in Oregon are continuing
their duties, even without receiv-
ing pay, Bomanici said, which has
been the case nationally, the first
time members of the Armed Forces
weren’t paid during a shutdown.
These stories are examples of
why the shutdown is “infuriating”
and “must end,” she said.
About 800,000 of the 2.1 million
federal employees who have been
impacted by the shutdown nation-
ally, including 380,000 who were
furloughed and are not working
and the remainder of which who
are considered essential employ-
ees and must work without pay. In
Oregon, that’s nearly 10,000 fed-
eral employees who are either fur-
loughed or working without pay,
according to the Oregon Employ-
ment Department.
Brian Florence, who works at
the federal prison in Sheridan, told
the Portland Observer it’s been
a struggle for him and other em-
ployees at the prison to pay rent,
provide food for their families and
cover medical costs.
Florence, 49, said that although
his family has managed to stay
afloat so far through limited sec-
ondary income from his wife and
receiving help from food pantries
at Oregon Food Bank and Salva-
tion Army, it’s been daunting not
going without a paycheck.
“I have two beautiful kids and
they need special attention medi-
cally. So we have additional costs
that are coming in right now and
we’re having trouble to figure it
out. Like, do we pay our medical
bills or do we hold back for gas?
Or do we pay our rent? What are
we going to do? We have to figure
it out,” he said.
If the shutdown continues, Flor-
ence, who lives in Salem, will again
not see a check for the second pay-
day in a row this week. He’s try-
ing to organize for food pantries to
come to the prison to drop off food
for him and his co-workers. Sen.
Wyden personally thanked Flor-
ence for his service.
Kirsten Wageman, executive
director of Snowcap, the largest
which is unacceptable and in total,
do not represent a good faith ef-
fort to restore certainty to people’s
lives.”
Trump proposed to restore
deportation protection for some
Deferred Action for Childhood
Arrivals recipients and Tempo-
rary Protected Status recipients
for three years--two programs for
tions,” like increased infrastruc-
ture investments at ports of entry,
advanced technology to scan for
drugs, weapons, and contraband,
3,000 more border patrol agents,
and more immigrant judges.
Democrats plan to pass its own
package of six bills agreed to by
House and Senate negotiators to
re-open the government this week,
according to the website of Pelosi’s
office.
On Friday, some of the 615,000
photo by D anny p eterson /t he p ortlanD o bserver
State Rep. Tawna Sanchez, director of family services at the Native American Youth and Family
Center in northeast Portland highlights some of the impacts of the government shutdown on people
of color, including Native American tribes who depend on federal funds for health, food and social
services. She was joined at the press conference on Friday at the Oregon Food Bank with furloughed
and unpaid federal workers and other Democratic members of Oregon’s Congressional delegation.
food pantry in the state and locat-
ed in east Portland near Gresham,
said their organization is seeing
an increase in either furloughed or
working-without-pay federal em-
ployees who are using safety net
services for the first time.
Democratic State Rep. Tawna
Sanchez, who represents parts of
inner northeast and north Portland
and is the director of family ser-
vices at the Native American Youth
and Family Center, highlighted the
communities of color that are deep-
ly impacted by the government
shutdown, including Native Amer-
ican tribes who depend on federal
funds for health, food, and social
services.
“United States Government has
a trust responsibility to the tribes.
This is written in treaty,” Sanchez
said. “This is a responsibility, it’s
not a gift, it’s not a given.” San-
chez, who is a social worker and
has worked in the domestic vio-
lence filed, later compared Trump
to an abuser. “Abusers only think
about themselves, they don’t think
about everybody else,” she said.
On Saturday, Trump made an
offer to temporarily restore pro-
tections he took away from some
undocumented immigrants in ex-
change for the $5.7 billion border
wall funding. That was an offer
Speaker of the House Nancy Pelo-
si, speaking for Democrats, called
“a compilation of several previ-
ously rejected initiatives, each of
immigrants that he rescinded last
year. Pelosi’s statement criticized
the fact that the deal did not include
permanent solutions for those re-
cipients, and its lack of “smart,
effective border security solu-
Oregonians participating in Sup-
plemental Nutrition Assistance
Program (SNAP), AKA food
stamps, were issued February ben-
efits early to last through the end
of next month. The supplemental
nutrition program for Women, In-
fant and Children (WIC) will also
be funded through February, and
school meal funding is secured
through March, according to Ore-
gon Food Bank.
At airports, longer wait times at
security checkpoints may occur,
but TSA officials said most opera-
tions are running normally.
Though the US Coast Guard
have been working without pay
during the shutdown, most other
military isn’t affected, and the De-
partment of Veterans Affairs is ful-
ly funded for the 2019 fiscal year
and will continue normal operation
during the shutdown.
Mail, tax refunds, and social
security should remain unaffect-
ed. National parks may be closed,
or be only partially staffed, and
Smithsonian museums and the Na-
tional Zoo are now closed.
Oregon Food Bank distributes
food through a statewide network
of 21 regional food banks and
approximately 1,200 food assis-
tance sites serving all of Oregon
and Clark County, Washington.
People seeking food assistance
should visit oregonfoodbank.com/
findfood.
Portland Police Bureau’s charity
organization, Sunshine Division,
will extend service qualifiers to
include federal employees not re-
ceiving pay by providing food box
services in partnership with labor
organizations. More information
can be found at sunshinedivision.
org.
Oregon Humane Society has
also scheduled free pet food banks
to furloughed or work-without-pay
federal employees. More infor-
mation can be found at oregonhu-
mane.org.