A Step By Step Guide To Preparing For The Coming Government Shutdown
Trump is almost certainly going to shut down the government again. Here's how to be ready for it.
by Justin Rosario
In a few weeks, Congress will likely pass another continuing resolution to keep the government open into December. By then, Democrats should be well into the public hearings that will lead to Trump's impeachment. Bill Barr, Trump's historically corrupt Attorney General, will also have made his "investigation" public in hopes of derailing the impeachment hearings.
When this fails to stop Democrats from moving ahead, Trump is almost certainly going to shut the government down.
Even if they pass a CR that lasts until February, which would be past the impeachment hearings in the House, Democrats will not give Trump money for his racist border wall. But my bet is that he's still going to find a reason to shut the government down to show that he's tough during an election year.
Unlike the previous shutdown, which only affected a relatively small part of the federal government, this one will likely shut down almost all of it.
Mitch McConnell may well urge Trump not to (because shutting the government down has never once worked in favor of the GOP) but Trump is a rabid dog and difficult to control. Better for government workers to be prepared now for a shutdown than scramble at the last second.
Stock Up
My wife and I have been preparing for shutdowns ever since Republicans took control of the House in 2010 because we knew that they love nothing more than to throw sand in the gears of government. Even so, we still weren't entirely ready when "The Big One" landed at the end of 2018, when Trump partially shut down the government for over a month. But we learned a lot of useful lessons, some of which seem screamingly obvious in hindsight. (cont below..)
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Stock up on dry and canned goods - Rice, pasta, soups, beans, sauce, cereal, oatmeal, stuffing, cooking oil, etc. If you have a pantry, even a small one, cram it with food that will hold for a while. If not, start storing it in boxes and label it.
Stock up on frozen meat - If your freezer permits, stock up on meat. Don't worry about frozen vegetables, those are very cheap and even $20 can buy you 2 weeks' worth of veggies. But if you need meat in your meals, better to stock up now. Whole chickens, as opposed to chicken pieces, are good because they're inexpensive and provide more than one meal. A family of four can get two full dinners and a lunch out of a medium-sized chicken. And you can make soup out of the bones if you know how.
Stock up on pet food - This is one of those hindsight things I mentioned earlier. We were so focused on people food, we didn't think about our poor kitties. Pet food is not super expensive but a month's supply isn't cheap when you have no paycheck. And food banks don't usually help with pets. Put a month's supply aside and don't forget about litter if you have cats.
Stock up on medicine - This one's a little tricky. You can't just ask for an extra month's supply of prescription medication. One thing I do is skip a day or two a week until I have enough pills put aside for a month. But that's assuming you can skip your medication at all. You can try to get an early refill when the shutdown looms closer but that leaves you at the mercy of the insurance company. Not a bet I'd be willing to make. The sooner you start squirreling meds away, the less you'll have to skip.
Also, don't forget about medicine for your pets if they have any.
Stock up on toiletries - Soap, shampoo, toilet paper, toothpaste, laundry detergent, etc. You don't want to have to buy any of this stuff when you don't have a paycheck. It's annoying. And you don't want to run out when you don't have the money to buy more. That's even worse.
Money Prep
This is the really really hard part. Most of us live paycheck to paycheck so putting money away, much less a few thousand dollars, is not easy. If you can do it, do it. If you can only do some of it, do that. If you can't put anything away, don't despair, you still have options.
Rent - This is the one that will hurt the most. Put away at least one month's worth of rent (or mortgage) and pretend it doesn't exist. Banks and rental companies, for the most part, do not care that the government is shut down. They only care that you are not paying your rent on time.
Student loans - Get the numbers and/or emails you'll need to ask for a deferment ahead of time. Most college loan companies are actually pretty good about this. You'll still be collecting interest on the loan but you won't get a penalty for not paying. If they give you a choice for how long to pause payments, do not choose one month. The last shutdown went longer than a month and there's no guarantee the next one won't be even longer than that. Also, you'll need time to get your finances back into order and a little breathing space will help.
Credit Cards - Some companies are better than others about this. Some will allow you a month's grace, others will be jerks about it. You'll have to call and find out.
Collection agencies - Ignore them. What are they going to do? Garnish your nonexistent paycheck?
Utilities - Put away at least one month's worth for your phone, electricity, heat, etc. Utility companies are also very unforgiving.
Transportation - Here's one we didn't think about for the first shutdown. Gas money. Just because you're not working doesn't mean you won't still be driving the car. Put the money on a gift card that's only to be used for gas and label it clearly.
Transportation part the second - Here's another one we didn't think about until the second shutdown. Metro money. My wife Debbie was one of the lucky "essential" employees who had to keep working while not getting paid. Guess what happened after four weeks? She ran out of money for the Metro and had to pay for it out of pocket.
Grocery store gift card - Slap some money on a gift card for your local grocery store. That way, you won't have to worry about buying fresh veggies, bread, milk, and other perishables.
Quarters for washing machines - If you live in an apartment building or take your clothes to the local Laundromat, put aside enough quarters for a month's worth of wash. It sounds trivial, but when you don't have a paycheck coming in, those quarters add up fast.
Cash - Put some in an envelope or put some money on a visa gift card. Whatever you're the most comfortable with, put it someplace where you won't spend it until you need it. I leave some of mine sitting in Paypal because I hardly ever touch it and the rest in an envelope buried in a drawer. It doesn't have to be a lot, even $40 will do, just enough for an emergency tank of gas or a doctor's visit.
Miscellaneous
Food pantries - Locate three or four food pantries in your community. Find out their times, how many people they can accommodate, if they have any requirements or restrictions, what parking is like, etc. You may not love the idea of taking a handout but when you skip two paychecks in a row, as Marcellus Wallace always says, "Fuck pride." You have a family to feed. Or you just yourself. Either way, food pantries exist explicitly to help people who need help. And if some jackass in the White House is holding your paycheck hostage, you need help.
Unemployment - Apply for this as soon as humanly possible. Get the information for your state's service's and read it over well before the shutdown starts. This stuff is complicated and you don't want to wait to figure it out while you're stressing out. If you are an "essential" employee and working, you will be denied. That's OK. You can appeal and get approved, it just takes a little longer. This is exactly what happened to my wife.
Just be aware you have to pay it back later when you get your back pay.
Get a temp job - During a government shutdown, all sorts of places will be looking to help out by hiring government workers, even if it's only for a few weeks. One of these will almost certainly be your local school district. Depending on where you live: You do not need a degree in education to be a substitute teacher. You do need to pass some background checks and get some basic training but almost every school district is starved for subs. You can earn some money and help out your community at the same time. You can do the training in advance if you're interested.
Always check the rules and regulations of your particular agency concerning a second job.
Fundraising - If an emergency comes up and you need to raise money, there's always online fundraising but, again, always check with your particular agency for the rules and regulations dealing with this.
Don't wait until the worst happens
Humans are not great at being proactive. We tend to wait until something bad happens and then freak out. This is a terrible idea. If a shutdown goes on long enough, it will negatively impact your credit rating if you can't pay your bills and you risk your security clearance, if you have one. Did that get your attention? I hope so.
You don't have to be a Doomsday Prepper and dig a fallout shelter in the backyard but these are fairly simple precautions to take to get you through the worst of someone else stupidity. Should you have to worry about this kind of thing? In an ideal world, no. But that's not the world we live in so it's better to be prepared, even partially, than to find yourself scrambling to find enough quarters to wash your underwear or praying you have enough gas to get the kids to school one more day.
Even after Trump is gone, you never know when some jackass is going find a way to shut it all down again. So why not be ready and worry-free?
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