Government Shutdown Shows Private Is Better: New at Reason

The government shutdown is now longer than any in history. The media say it’s a “crisis.”

The Washington Post talks talks about the “shutdown’s pain.” The New York Times says it’s “just too much.”

John Stossel says: wait a second. Looking around America, everything seems pretty normal. Life goes on. Kids still play and learn, adults still work, stock prices have actually increased during the shutdown. It’s hardly the end of the world.

But he adds that the government shutdown is still a problem. For some 400,000 furloughed workers, and another 400,000 working without pay for now, the shutdown hurts.

But while New York Times columnist Paul Krugman calls it “Trump’s big libertarian experiment,” Stossel notes that the shutdown is not libertarian. Government’s rules are still in effect, and soon workers will be paid for not working. Stossel calls that an un-libertarian experiment.

Libertarians want to permanently cut government, not shut down parts for a few weeks and then pay the workers anyway.

There are lessons to be learned from the shutdown.

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The views expressed in this video are solely those of John Stossel; his independent production company, Stossel Productions; and the people he interviews. The claims and opinions set forth in the video and accompanying text are not necessarily those of Reason.

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