S&P: The Cost of the Government Shutdown is About to Exceed the Cost of the Wall

As the saying goes, you have to spend money to make money.

Right now, in order to stand firm on funding for a border wall, Republicans — trying to “make” over $5 Big Ones in appropriations — are partially causing the country to “spend” billions. So much so, the expenditure is soon to exceed the cost of the wall’s initial construction

So says S&P Global:

The total economic cost of the ongoing partial U.S. government shutdown would exceed the amount of border wall funding that President Donald Trump is seeking if the impasse in Washington lasts for another two weeks, S&P Global Ratings said.

The U.S. economy will have lost $3.6 billion by Jan. 11, the 21st day of the shutdown, the rating agency said. The amount translates to approximately $1.2 billion every week since the shutdown began Dec. 22, 2018.

Based on that, in only two weeks, the cost of the shutdown will exceed the $5.7 billion Trump has demanded for construction to begin.

The longer this shutdown drags on, the more collateral damage the economy will suffer.

From the bleachers, the (partial) shutdown’s been fairly entertaining; it’s brought out a stick-to-the-guns Trump (here) and an on-fire Lindsey Graham (here). On the other side, it’s highlighted stunning absurdity from Democrats, hypocritically labeling things for which they previously signed on as moral offenses (see a great lead-up to today here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, and here).

Now it’s incumbent upon both parties to dig their spurs into the dirt, nothing but a whistle in the wind and a packed-full-of-eyeballs saloon between them — the Republicans, because Trump promised a wall and 2020 looms, and the Dems, because they’ve made some of the dumbest statements in political history over the last two years, shedding the coat of rationale and throwing on the stoll of absurdity with a twirl. Their characterization of border security as everything from xenophobic to immoral has painted them into a corner, forcing them to double-down on vapidity.

So what happens next? Whatever it is, it looks like it’s going to be expensive. One way or another.

-Alex

Wanna see more money that didn’t go toward the wall? Check this out.

Relevant RedState links in this article: here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, and here.

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