Source: Direct News
Direct news：The U.S. government has closed again after seven years. How is this shutdown different from the past? Why does the government shutdown seem to only occur in the United States?
Special commentator Chen Bing：This government shutdown is not much different from previous ones. Some departments still need to work, such as the Ministry of Defense, the Ministry of Health, the Ministry of Commerce, the State Council and other important departments. Only half of the people in these departments continue to work, but wages will not be repaid until the government opens. Government employees forced to take leave will not receive wages. Homeland Security cannot take leave, but it needs to guard the border without pay. Members of Congress are not affected and receive their wages even if they take leave.
What is different from the past this time is that Trump threatened to prepare large-scale layoffs during the government shutdown to streamline the administration, so some federal government employees may lose their jobs after this government shutdown. As in the past, this government shutdown happened when the Republican and * parties were out of order in their respective bills. Trump's Republican Party demands that the government funding bill be passed, and no other bills are attached; The Democratic Party insists on attaching the low-income health insurance subsidy guarantee bill and the Medicaid no-reduction bill. The two parties couldn't reach an agreement, and the government had no capital budget, so it had to close its doors.
So why does the government shutdown seem to happen only in the United States?The U.S. federal government system allows different government departments to be controlled by different political parties, a structure designed by the founders to encourage compromise, but has produced the opposite effect since the 1980s, alienating as a bargaining tool for political leaders.。Since the first government shutdown in 1981, there have been 10 shutdowns.This is the 11th.It also means that the split between the two parties in the United States is increasing to a stage where cooperation is difficult to compromise, and countries such as Europe or Canada, even if they encounter a minority party rule, can solve budget problems through negotiation and compromise and maintain the normal functioning of the government.
Direct news：The United States held a rare general meeting, Trump delivered an hour and 10 minutes long speech at the conference, what signal?
Special commentator Chen Bing：The conference attended by hundreds of American generals is a symbol of the replacement of the "Department of Defense" by the U.S. "Department of War", and it is also a mobilization meeting for the U.S. military reform. However, President Trump's performance is more like an Internet celebrity's screen-dominating show. From Biden climbing stairs to talking about the appearance of US warships, to the Russia-Ukraine conflict and the Nobel Peace Prize, it is long-winded and intertwined. Switching between different topics, I am self-intoxicated to an extent beyond measure. Would you even suspect that it was the President of the United States who was speaking? You may feel more like an ill-prepared talk show actor confidently "gossiping".
Nevertheless, he still revealed some new ideas, which can be summed up in seven points:
The first is that the military will focus on "internal enemies", including domestic riots and illegal immigration, and will treat dangerous cities as training fields. This means that the nature of the U.S. military has changed, from the original defense of national security, to increase domestic stability, participation in domestic civil law enforcement, equivalent to armed police, expanding the powers of the military.
The second is to propose to invest US $1 trillion in military construction in 2026, which will not only improve military efficiency, but also speed up the global arms sales process. This means that the United States will expand military spending and arms sales, and build a stronger military.
The third is to propose a 20-point plan to end the war in Gaza, to issue a final communiqué to Hamas, and to propose concrete strategies for post-war peace and reconstruction in Gaza. This is the most valuable content in Trump's speech, but whether it can be implemented remains to be seen.
Fourth, he boasted that he saved millions of lives and deserved the Nobel Peace Prize,It can be seen that he is crazy to win this award. However, the United States is also preparing for military actions against Iran and Venezuela, doing just the opposite of peace.
Fifth, expressed dissatisfaction with Russian President Vladimir Putin, shirked responsibility for his failure to promote a ceasefire between Russia and Ukraine, and asked Putin for no reason, "Are you a paper tiger?" The signal sent by these remarks is that the United States may escape from the Ukrainian crisis, no longer conduct diplomatic and military mediation, and just wants to do some arms business.
Sixth, continuing to express dissatisfaction with Biden and the Democratic Party, blaming Biden for Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, he said the chaotic situation of Biden’s withdrawal from Afghanistan contributed to Putin’s invasion of Ukraine, making U.S. generals “two monks” who did not know the logical connection between the two.
He made it clear that if he didn’t like any of the generals, he would resign. This was about showing his authority and calling the generals to be loyal and absolute. The generals’ reaction seemed to illustrate their attitude toward Trump. The Washington Post said that when Trump was speaking in front of hundreds of generals, he was suffering.The scene was treated with "death silence". So much so that Trump seemed a little uncomfortable and couldn't help but ask the generals."grateful“I’ve never entered such a quiet room, if you want to applaud, applaud.”
Direct news：U.S. Defense Secretary Hegseth emphasized military reform at the General Conference. How will the U.S. military be reformed? What is the goal?
Special commentator Chen Bing：In Trump’s speech, some military reform plans have been put forward, such as expanding military spending, focusing on “internal enemies”, dismissing “generals who don’t like them” at any time, while Defense Secretary Hertz proposed 10 new military reform directives, more specifically.
The military reform proposed by Hegerseth included raising the military’s physical standards, strict military discipline, ending the so-called “awakening culture”. In the military’s physical aspects, the battle positions will return to the “masculine highest standard” physical assessment, there will be no obese officers, there will be no “toxic leadership” of disseminating awakening ideas. In the military’s ritual instruments, the professional image should be emphasized, the shaving requirements should be re-implemented, all soldiers should maintain a clean appearance, like an individual. For female soldiers, gender neutrality will be taken in the physical test, no matter whether men and women are at the same high standards. Soldiers are prohibited from “claiming” on social media, anonymously destroying their
The military reform plan proposed by Hegseth aims to "arouse the fighting spirit" again, end the leadership style of "politically correct, over-sensitive, and afraid to offend anyone" in the military, and make the US military no longer passively defend, but born to win the war. He said that the duty of soldiers is to kill enemies and destroy targets, not to participate in social experiments. The mission of the US military is to "achieve peace through strength" rather than cater to the "vague and politicized ultimate goal." His speech is relatively tough, and the style of the US military may change. He was very rude to the generals. Like Trump, he said that whoever opposed the military reform would resign.
Author Chen Bing