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Warnings about the US shutdown’s real world impact have really ramped up this week. Here are some of the most serious...
1/ Three aviation unions said today they have “growing concern” for safety of travellers. Warned they cannot predict when “entire system will break”. 
2/ A system to log safety information to stop accidents may also not be working properly, the same group said.
3/ Air traffic controllers are making “routine mistakes” because of pressure from shutdown, the head of one of those three unions also said.
(Air traffic controllers. They are quite important.)
(Air traffic controllers. They are quite important.)
4/ Now for law enforcement. FBI is hit by the shutdown. Its agents association put out a report detailing real (anonymised) examples of the impact.
Child exploitation investigations are being undermined. Victim interviews delayed. So are arrests.
Child exploitation investigations are being undermined. Victim interviews delayed. So are arrests.
5/ FBI agents can’t pay informers to help them bust drug dealers. They also can’t catch them in the act by posing as buyers because they’ve got no money.
6/ Counter-terrorism efforts are being harmed because intelligence sources can’t be paid. Some have already gone cold. Half a dozen accounts like the ones below.
7/ Homeland Security is facing a braindrain. Employees are looking elsewhere for jobs - including those with cybersecurity expertise.
5 ex-secretaries of the department - including John Kelly, Trump’s chief of staff when shutdown begun - said as much in a letter.
5 ex-secretaries of the department - including John Kelly, Trump’s chief of staff when shutdown begun - said as much in a letter.
8/ Domestic violence centres are also cutting back services over funding fears, as Wash Post has highlighted. One had to scrap home visits in rural areas.
washingtonpost.com/national/the-g…
washingtonpost.com/national/the-g…
9/ Impact on US economy (delayed flotations on stock market, new products failing to get gov approval) too many to mention.
But the chair of White House’s council of economic advisers summed it up - there could be close to zero growth in Q1 2019.
But the chair of White House’s council of economic advisers summed it up - there could be close to zero growth in Q1 2019.
10/ Flights are now being halted at one of New York’s main airports because of staff shortages from the shutdown. bloomberg.com/news/articles/…
