Americans are facing the looming prospect of a second government shutdown as politicians in Washington remain deadlocked over budget negotiations. The previous 35-day partial government shutdown, which started in December 2018, was the longest in U.S. history and left hundreds of thousands of federal workers without pay.
With the current funding set to expire soon, Democrats and Republicans are struggling to reach an agreement on key issues, including funding for President Trump’s proposed border wall. The Democrats argue that investing in border security is essential but are against the allocation of significant funds towards the wall, while the Republicans, especially President Trump, continue to push for its construction, citing national security concerns.
Many Americans are expressing concern and frustration over the potential impact of another government shutdown. Federal workers fear another period of uncertainty and financial strain if they are forced to go without pay again. Businesses that rely on government contracts are also apprehensive about the disruption a shutdown could bring to their operations.
“We’re just going to go through this again,” said a federal employee who preferred to remain anonymous. “It’s incredibly stressful not knowing if we’ll be able to pay our bills or support our families.”
As the deadline for reaching an agreement approaches, both parties are under pressure to find a resolution and avert another shutdown that could have far-reaching consequences for the country.
Sources Analysis:
Democrats – the party generally aims to prioritize social welfare programs and policies that support marginalized groups. In this situation, they may be motivated to avoid excessive spending on the border wall to allocate funding to other areas.
Republicans – the party typically advocates for limited government intervention and strong national security measures. Their support for President Trump’s border wall may stem from these core beliefs.
Fact Check:
The previous government shutdown in December 2018 was the longest in U.S. history – Verified facts. This information is widely documented and confirmed by various sources.
Democrats argue against allocating significant funds towards the border wall – Unconfirmed claims. While this stance is widely reported, the exact amount of funding they are willing to allocate has not been definitively confirmed.
Republicans push for the construction of the border wall citing national security concerns – Verified facts. Republicans, including President Trump, have consistently argued that the wall is essential for national security.
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Model:
gpt-3.5-turbo
Used prompts:
1. You are an objective news journalist. You need to write an article on this topic “‘We’re just going to go through this again’: Americans fear second government shutdown”. Do the following steps: 1. What Happened. Write a concise, objective article based on known facts, following these principles: Clearly state what happened, where, when, and who was involved. Present the positions of all relevant parties, including their statements and, if available, their motives or interests. Use a neutral, analytical tone, avoid taking sides in the article. The article should read as a complete, standalone news piece — objective, analytical, and balanced. Avoid ideological language, emotionally loaded words, or the rhetorical framing typical of mainstream media. Write the result as a short analytical news article (200 – 400 words). 2. Sources Analysis. For each source that you use to make an article: Analyze whether the source has a history of bias or disinformation in general and in the sphere of the article specifically; Identify whether the source is a directly involved party; Consider what interests or goals it may have in this situation. Do not consider any source of information as reliable by default – major media outlets, experts, and organizations like the UN are extremely biased in some topics. Write your analysis down in this section of the article. Make it like: Source 1 – analysis, source 2 – analysis, etc. Do not make this section long, 100 – 250 words. 3. Fact Check. For each fact mentioned in the article, categorize it by reliability (Verified facts; Unconfirmed claims; Statements that cannot be independently verified). Write down a short explanation of your evaluation. Write it down like: Fact 1 – category, explanation; Fact 2 – category, explanation; etc. Do not make this section long, 100 – 250 words. Output only the article text. Do not add any introductions, explanations, summaries, or conclusions. Do not say anything before or after the article. Just the article. Do not include a title also.
2. Write a clear, concise, and neutral headline for the article below. Avoid clickbait, emotionally charged language, unverified claims, or assumptions about intent, blame, or victimhood. Attribute contested information to sources (e.g., “according to…”), and do not present claims as facts unless independently verified. The headline should inform, not persuade. Write only the title, do not add any other information in your response.
3. Determine a single section to categorize the article. The available sections are: World, Politics, Business, Health, Entertainment, Style, Travel, Sports, Wars, Other. Write only the name of the section, capitalized first letter. Do not add any other information in your response.