END IT

Republicans and Democrats have been slowly peeling away from their leadership position on the shutdown and are calling for an end to the Government pay halt now going into day 34.

Now, a former high ranking  Trump administration official and other former Homeland Security secretaries are calling for President Trump and Congress to reopen the government.

According to the Daily Beast…

Former White House chief of staff John Kelly, along with four other former Homeland Security secretaries, has called on President Trump to end the partial government shutdown in order to ensure national security.

John Kelly was forced out of the White House on Jan 1st after a rough and tumble 16 months as the guardian to the oval office. He was tapped by Trump to run the White House after Kelly had served as Homeland Security chief and was given high praise for steadying the White House after Trump assumed offcie in Jan 2017.

That Kelly would join former Homeland Security heads in a letter to both Congress and The President is not shocking due to the fact that  85% of those DHS employees are not getting paid according to CNN

Around 85% of DHS employees are either working with their pay on hold or are furloughed, according to a DHS official, and will not receive paychecks unless Trump signs the measure Congress has passed specifically authorizing it.

Inbox: 5 former Homeland Security secretaries, including ex Trump chief of staff John Kelly, ex Pa Gov Tom Ridge and NJs Michael Chertoff write joint letter urging Trump, Congress to fund the Dept. pic.twitter.com/spmsGoQeFb

— Jonathan Tamari (@JonathanTamari) January 23, 2019

Now I know that the base of both sides does not want to give in.

I happen to side with Trump that a barrier needs to be built with other measures being the evidence is clear of the effectiveness of it. If you don’t think that is true, you probably think Nathan Phillips is a good drummer and fabulous Marine or that the new infanticide bill just signed in New York is a humanitarian triumph.

Yet, how long would you work in a high-stress job with no pay? You can talk about dedication and perseverance all you want but these are not 18-year-old kids filling these jobs. These are trained professionals with families and bills that are supposed to be on the front lines catching stuff to keep the country safe.

Both sides have made their point. Sign a clean bill and get the government reopened and pound the crap out of each other about why it took so long during the 24/7 news cycle. Keeping the government shutdown and not paying the people who we have asked to do a job most of us would not want to do, is just playing Russain Roulette with the safety of the nation.

Donald Trump and the members of Congres all had high praise for John Kelly at one point. You should take his advice on this issue and end the shutdown.

Check out my other post on Trump Deals On Dreamers And Democrats Reject my podcast Bourbon On The Rocks   plus like Bourbon On The Rocks on Facebook and follow me on the twitters at IRISHDUKE2