Trump’s campaign promise to build a wall on the U.S./Mexico border continues to be negated as the government has now reached the third week of its shutdown, which is the longest in U.S. history. While the construction of a wall has been a controversial and continually debated subject since the presidential race in 2016, Trump’s push to keep his promise has kept everyone on edge.
It seems apparent, though, that for the sake of government employees that are working without pay that the shutdown must end. However, Trump has tweeted after meetings with Democrats, such as Nancy Pelosi, that he is willing to let this shutdown go on until the wall is confirmed.
What’s even more frustrating is the continual displays of party polarization that plague our country. Every headline you find about the government shutdown states “Trump and the Democrats.” Border security is clearly something that is important to both parties, but not to the extent of Trump’s wall. Thus, it is evident that politicians, including Trump, will not compromise their party’s viewpoints.
The growing polarization of the two-party system in America has reached a point where it is no longer just between our government officials. Government employees, those that are not senators/house members, have been working without pay while higher ups are being paid to argue in a seemingly never-ending screaming match. Democrats have proposed compromises for the sake of ending the shutdown, but Trump has made it very clear that he will not settle for anything but his wall.
All we can hope for is that the wall can be put aside in order for the government shutdown to come to an end, and for employees to finally receive pay for their work. Yet, it seems that there is no end in sight as our two-party system continues to prove itself as problematic.