A government shutdown isn't inevitable – it's a choice. And a dumb one.

With recent setbacks in negotiations and the deadline quickly approaching, emerging consensus among lawmakers, staff, the Capitol Hill news media and longtime Washington operatives is that the federal government is almost certainly heading for another government shutdown come Oct. 1, the beginning of the government’s fiscal year. 

A government shutdown isn’t inevitable – it is a choice. And it is among the dumbest decisions Washington can make.

Since 1995, there have been five government shutdowns, instigated by both Republicans and Democrats on the theory that withholding support for keeping the government open and functioning could somehow provide leverage to force the other party to agree to certain demands.

These demands have ranged from changes to the federal deficit to defunding Obamacare and ratifying Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals to building the border wall.

The five government shutdowns have one thing in common: They all failed.

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How government shutdown fails you, businesses and US economy

If government shutdowns were just another failed legislative tactic that policymakers tried from time to time, no one would care much. But this tactic has real-world negative consequences that hurt the American people, businesses of all sizes and the American economy.

During a shutdown, mortgage and loan applications are delayed because lenders can’t access income records or Social Security number verification services. Visas and passports are delayed, hurting both American travelers and the American tourism industry.

The inability to get government permits can slow down everything from energy production to commercial fishing – even the export of American-made goods. 

During the last government shutdown that lasted for 35 days and ended in January 2019, the Small Business Administration was unable to approve loans, creating a massive backlog that led to financial insecurity for hundreds of small business owners.

Major federal contractors servicing critical agencies such as NASA and the Department of the Interior became insolvent and had to fire employees – threatening economic livelihoods and our national security. 

What does a government shutdown mean for us?

And that barely scratches the surface of the fallout. During the 35 days the government was shuttered, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce heard from people across the country about the hardships the shutdown was creating and how their lives and livelihoods were being upended:

• An 18-room historic family inn in Georgia lost $1,000 a day when the shutdown blocked tourism to Cumberland Island National Seashore that the hotel relied on to stay in business.
• Up the coast, a fisherman in Massachusetts was unable to get his permit application approved to operate his boat because the government shutdown left the National Marine Fisheries Service (NOAA Fisheries) out of commission. As a result, the fisherman missed out on a crucial part of the scalloping season and nearly lost his business.
• The chief operating officer of a restaurant based in Washington, D.C., watched all his customers disappear because federal employees were furloughed, also impacting his distributors and his employees when he was forced to cut wages.

The reality is, a government shutdown can be more than just a chokepoint for a business’ operations; it can be a death knell to their very existence and a blow to the livelihoods that depend on it. 

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To be clear, there are problems that Congress and the Biden administration are long overdue in addressing, including the border crisis and a runaway debt deficit. But history shows that a shutdown won’t help solve any of these issues. It is only going to dig the hole deeper.  

The good news: Shutting down the government is still a choice.

Let’s hope that policymakers defy the emerging conventional wisdom, reject the notion that a shutdown is inevitable – and make the smart choice to keep the government open and American lives and livelihoods intact.

As executive vice president, chief policy officer and head of strategic advocacy at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, Neil Bradley is responsible for the organization’s overall advocacy efforts. In addition to managing policy development for the Chamber, Bradley oversees its government affairs activities, political program and relations with other business organizations.