Hwang: 'When Partisan Inaction Shuts Down Federal Government, Connecticut Families Pay The Price'

By: State Senator Tony Hwang

Another Washington D.C. shutdown is here, and not just any shutdown. The current federal closure, which began on October 1, 2025, has now stretched past 40 days, making it the longest government shutdown in U.S. history. Once again, hardworking Connecticut families are the ones who bear the brunt while politicians in D.C. point fingers. The truth is straightforward: Partisan politics create chaos.

This record-breaking shutdown isn’t just a Washington story, it’s a painful reminder of how political gridlock and brinkmanship hurt everyday Americans. Political gamesmanship has replaced governance, and party loyalty has eclipsed public service. It’s not about one side winning—it’s about the American people losing trust in their government.

Every day this shutdown drags on, Connecticut pays the price. Thousands of federal employees at the Coast Guard Academy in New London, VA hospitals in West Haven and Newington, Bradley International Airport, and throughout our state face delayed paychecks and furloughs. Small businesses that depend on federal contracts or visitor traffic from our parks and historic sites are left in limbo. Families waiting for housing vouchers, child-care support, or nutrition assistance are forced to wonder if help will arrive.

For many, this shutdown couldn’t come at a worse time. Connecticut families are already navigating high costs of living, steep energy rates, unaffordable healthcare costs and economic uncertainty. A record-long shutdown adds another layer of fear and frustration. Federal workers shouldn’t have to wonder how they’ll pay their mortgages or keep food on the table. Parents shouldn’t have to worry whether their children’s meal programs will continue. And seniors shouldn’t have to worry that the benefits they rely on will be interrupted.

This is not leadership—it’s failure, plain and simple. Both parties have allowed these recurring standoffs to become political theater instead of solving problems. Too often, federal budget negotiations turn into soundbites for cable news rather than serious efforts to find compromise. Short-term political gain has overtaken the long-term responsibility and burden of governing.

It doesn’t have to be this way. In the Connecticut General Assembly, I and many other legislative colleagues have shown that bipartisan cooperation is still possible and productive. We have demonstrated firsthand how Democrats and Republicans in our state legislature can come together to pass collaborative and responsive public policy affecting our aging seniors, unaffordable healthcare costs, transportation safety, environmental sustainability and protecting those most vulnerable and at-risk. We debate vigorously and passionately, but we don’t let those debates paralyze us and put Connecticut residents at risk. It may not be pretty but that’s what real governing and leadership look like.

Washington could learn a lesson from that. True leadership requires humility, respect, and a willingness to listen. It means setting aside partisan talking points and working together for the greater good. The people of Connecticut—and our country—deserve a government that functions with consistency, transparency, and integrity.

Above all, what’s needed now is trust. The American people’s faith in their institutions is eroding. When elected officials use government shutdowns as bargaining chips, they deepen that distrust and weaken the very democracy they swore to serve.

The challenges facing this country—economic competitiveness, balance of power, public health, education, national security and public safety—are too important to be held hostage to partisan politics. Americans expect and deserve better.

It’s time for both parties to end the blame game, stop the shutdowns, and start doing the hard work of governing again. Because when Washington fails, it’s not politicians who suffer - it’s the families, workers, and communities of Connecticut and across America.

Senator Tony Hwang represents Connecticut’s 28th Senate District, including Fairfield, Southport, Easton, Newtown, and parts of Bethel. He serves as Ranking Republican Leader of the Transportation, Aging and Insurance & Real Estate Committees and Co-Chair of the bipartisan Bioscience Caucus