The pressure to resolve the country’s longest government shutdown grows as more average people begin to notice the impact.
The Trump administration has tried to delay that moment. IRS workers are processing tax refunds without pay. The Agriculture Department has dipped into funds to keep food stamp money flowing, at least for a few more weeks.
Meanwhile, Democrats have been busy highlighting everything the government is not doing. They’ve said food inspections have stopped, airports are less safe and government computers are more vulnerable to hackers.
We checked out a handful of their claims. We found some cause for concern, and some exaggeration.
Food inspections
In a Facebook post, Florida Rep. Alcee Hastings said “food inspections have stopped.”
Some of that work is on hold, but far from all of it.
USDA reports that 90 percent of its workforce remains on the job. Those are the employees who keep an eye on the nation’s meat and poultry slaughterhouses.
“In large measure, the inspections continue,” said Tony Corbo of Food and Water Watch, a consumer advocacy group.
Monitoring vegetables and seafood falls to the Food and Drug Administration, which is doing less…
