US federal workers and their families have taken to social media to voice their frustration on the ongoing government shutdown that has dragged on for five days so far.
The individuals, who are expressing their problems and concerns through Hashtag-ShutdownStories, are mainly angry over the timing of the shutdown which is taking place during Christmas holidays.
Nearly one-quarter of the US federal government agencies has been shut down since December 22.
There are some worried about their due mortgage payments and not being able to pay their rents or feed their families.
I am a single mother of 3 with no help. Not knowing if I can pay rent or feed my family next week is hard and all that’s on my mind this day of Christmas when I should be happy. My kids feel my anxiety too 😔 #ShutdownStories
— mj4ever (@mj4ever) December 25, 2018
There is also a Twitter user who is worried about paying for her husband's caregiver.
I’ve been a loyal, dedicated federal employee for almost 30 years. I ❤️ my work. I may have to terminate my husband’s caregiver because it’s so expensive, it’ll rip through any savings we have very quickly. I’m besides myself with worry this Christmas. #ShutdownStories
— AltCivilServant ✊🏼🌊🙄🌈🌲✌🏼 (@AltCivilServant) December 25, 2018
There is a war veteran who has been waiting for her surgery for more than a year.
I am a disabled veteran who has been waiting for service connected surgery for over a year (yes it takes that long), can't get my final approval because of Govn't shutdown. This delay is making my future health care costs more expensive for all taxpayers. #ShutdownStories
— 🦓🌊Melissa🌊🦓 #VetsResistSquadron (@MsPopRouge) December 25, 2018
And the wife of a law enforcement officer who tweeted about her concerns about her toddler and another "one on the way."
My husband is active duty Coast Guard. Everyone thinks the military is getting paid during the shutdown, but the Coast Guard is facing no pay on the 1st due to being DHS and not DoD. We live in NYC, pay over $2K/month in rent, have a toddler and one on the way.#ShutdownStories
— Katy⚓ (@katyjb88) December 24, 2018
Speaking after a Christmas Day video message on Tuesday, President Donald Trump insisted that the partial shutdown of the federal government would last until his demand for funds to build a wall on the US-Mexico border was met.
Trump expressed hope that the wall would be completed by the next presidential election in 2020, also announcing plans to go to the border in January to visit a new stretch of wall.