The federal government is on the brink of a shutdown – and the blame for this unexpected turn of events lies squarely with Republicans, particularly Elon Musk and Donald Trump. Earlier this week, House Speaker Mike Johnson negotiated a deal with Democrats that would maintain funding for the government for three months and fund a range of programs that lower prescription drug costs, fund childhood cancer research and in would invest in early detection of breast and cervical cancer and eliminate hidden costs from hotel and ticket fees. Musk then posted dozens of tweets sharply criticizing the deal. Later, the president-elect intervened and bad-mouthed the deal—and suddenly House Republicans couldn’t run away from the deal fast enough.

Not surprisingly, the plutocrats and politicians responsible for this shutdown will not pay the price. Instead, this burden will be borne by the American people.

Many Republicans seem to believe that the temporary government shutdown is an inconsequential measure. Musk has said that “shutting down the government (which, by the way, doesn’t actually shut down critical functions) is infinitely better than passing a terrible bill.”

Vivek Ramaswamy, Musk’s partner on the famed Department of Government Efficiency advisory committee, says Johnson’s bill “will end up hurting many of the people it’s supposed to help.” According to GOP Rep. Nancy Mace, who is taking a break from demonizing trans people, “If there’s no plan, let the September CR expire and let’s reset it on January 20th…It’s not the scary shutdown.” that the lying media tells you.”

When Mace heads to the airport to go home for Christmas break, she should ask the TSA officers responsible for her flight’s security if not receiving a paycheck later this month is scary for her – although them as essential employees they should still report to work.

It’s true that government workers are paid retroactively after a government shutdown ends – but last time I checked, most Americans can’t pay their mortgage or rent retroactively. And while credit card companies generally don’t mind making their customers pay their monthly bills long after they’re due, that’s because they charge them exorbitant interest rates and late fees.

If TSA employees or air traffic controllers decide to stay home rather than work without pay, we will all pay the price by waiting longer at the airport and experiencing major flight delays.

It’s not just TSA employees who will pay the price of a government shutdown. Active military members do not receive a salary. Social Security checks will continue to be sent out, but the Social Security Administration’s 60,000 employees will likely be furloughed — meaning Social Security recipients who need help will face longer wait times.

An earlier federal shutdown in 2013 closed national parks across the country, resulting in half a billion dollars in lost visitor spending. This time, some parks may remain open, but the federal employees working there — who will likely be furloughed — also won’t get a paycheck.

A government shutdown could also cause families to lose access to the Head Start program, which provides child care. The same goes for those who receive food assistance through the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children, better known as WIC.

Small businesses waiting for federal government loans will have to wait longer (the 2018-19 shutdown delayed more than $2 billion in Small Business Administration loans). What about a small business that relies on government contracts? They may have to wait weeks to get paid and, in the meantime, will be forced to lay off staff while they wait for House Republicans to do their job.

Do you want to buy a house? There’s a good chance your mortgage application will be delayed. Delays at the border due to staff shortages could lead to higher transit costs. Guess who these costs are passed on to? (Note: not Musk or Ramaswamy).

Oh, and it’s worth noting that a government shutdown means people in North Carolina and elsewhere waiting for disaster relief will have to keep waiting.

It’s certainly true that many Americans will hardly notice these inconveniences – but after a while it all adds up, and the costs will be greater the longer the shutdown lasts.

The five-week partial government shutdown in 2018-19 reduced economic output by $11 billion — and that included $3 billion that the economy never recovered. Moody’s estimates that a shutdown in 2013 reduced economic growth by $20 billion. A 2019 report from a Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs subcommittee found that three shutdowns in fiscal years 2014, 2018 and 2019, which lasted a combined two months, cost the federal government 56,938 years of lost labor productivity.

The constant debate over the budget and the debt limit led to the rating agency Fitch downgrading the US government’s credit rating in 2023 – a step also taken by Standard & Poor in 2011.

The bottom line is that government shutdowns cost taxpayer dollars, harm federal government employees, undermine entrepreneurs, make the most vulnerable Americans even more vulnerable, and make America a global laughingstock. But why should Trump, Musk, Ramaswamy or the Republicans in the House of Representatives care? They are all well protected against the chaos they have caused. The rest of us will pay the price.