Shutdown, US in chaos: airports in New York blocked
The situation becomes dramatic with the suspension of social services for the most deprived population. 1 November saw the end of the funds to guarantee food assistance to 42 million Americans - almost one in eight of the country's citizens - through the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP)
by Marco Valsania and Luca Veronese
NEW YORK
The emergency meeting convened at the White House by Vice-President JD Vance was not enough to appease the major airlines and not even the trade unions: it is an emergency because of the shutdown in the United States, which is also causing serious problems for transport.
While no solution is in sight in the political confrontation between the Republican administration and the opposition Democrats in Congress, the chaos is increasing, more and more every day, in the lives of Americans: the blockade involves, along with airports, childcare, disease prevention and schools, food assistance for families in need, as well as courts, military payrolls, and even funding for FBI investigations. Numerous American states have declared emergencies, claiming extraordinary resources to cope with the federal vacuum.
The paralysis has now lasted for more than a month, we are close to the record set by Donald Trump in his first term with 35 days between 2018 and 2019: the suspension of government activities considered non-essential will last until an agreement is found in Congress on the budget and thus on the spending lines to be renewed.
At least 800,000 federal employees have not received their paychecks for four weeks, many of them risk losing their jobs forever, is the threat from the White House. "If the lockout continues until Thanksgiving at the end of November, it will be a disaster, we are talking about entire families without pay for weeks.
