Here in Washington, there is less than a week before federal funding runs out and the government shuts down. Unfortunately, Congress is once again deadlocked on a way forward.
Ever since we were founded more than 15 years ago, No Labels has consistently opposed government shutdowns. They are disruptive, expensive, and pointless. There is no version of a shutdown next week where the country comes out ahead.
But here is the part that does not make headlines: This big budget fight – which is unfortunately becoming a regular tradition in D.C. – actually only concerns less than one-third of what the federal government actually spends.
The spending that Congress is debating now is ONLY the discretionary slice of the budget — funding for education, transportation, defense, public health, and everything else that Congress has to renew every year.
But that only makes up about 27 percent of total federal spending in a given year. The other 73 percent goes to mandatory programs like Social Security and Medicare — and to interest on the debt, which now exceeds $37.5 trillion and is growing every day.
We made the chart below to demonstrate the full picture of our federal balance sheet — not just the part that gets argued about on cable news.
Here is the biggest takeaway: Washington is locked in a standoff over a narrow sliver of the budget while ignoring the nearly three-quarters of spending on autopilot that is rising fast and driving our long-term debt problem. Medicare, Medicaid, and Social Security alone combined for more than 40 percent of all spending last year.
Interest payments alone now take up a bigger share than Medicaid or the entire defense budget. But there is no serious plan on the table to address the simple fact that Washington chronically spends more money than it takes in, to the tune of $1.9 trillion in 2024. So, the brinksmanship you are witnessing over a possible shutdown is not just pointless. It also completely ignores the main drivers of our increasingly dangerous national debt.
This is the kind of political sleight of hand that drives most Americans up the wall. Lawmakers are acting like they are fighting over the future of the country, and the discretionary part of the budget is important, but Congress arguing over discretionary spending alone is like arguing over the thermostat while ignoring the house burning around you.
When you think about the kind of leaders you want in Congress, ask yourself: Are they the ones who pick fights to score points with their base — or the ones who quietly get to work on the hard stuff no one wants to touch?
The debt challenge will not be solved overnight. For it will never be solved at all unless we start elevating leaders who understand that governing means doing more than just blaming the other side, but showing up, rolling up sleeves, and working across the aisle to prevent both the immediate crisis and the long-term one.
That is why No Labels exists. Right now, we are the only group in Washington focused on building a durable, bipartisan force committed to governing and solving problems.
If we do not cultivate and support those kinds of leaders now, no one will. And without them, no one is going to do anything to solve this shutdown, let alone what may end up being the defining problem of our time — a debt load that, if left unaddressed, could create a global financial crisis that makes the 2008 recession look mild.
That is why we are actively bringing together a working group of bipartisan lawmakers from both chambers of Congress to build a path forward on how we might avoid a fiscal disaster.
If you are tired of watching Congress play out the same shutdown drama every year while our debt crisis gets worse, you are not alone.
We are building a coalition of Americans who are ready to do something about it — starting by supporting the leaders who are serious about fixing both.
Stick with us in the coming days. We will be sharing ways to make your voice heard as the clock ticks toward September 30.
