Part 2/13:
The Human Cost Behind the Headlines
For thousands of workers, the shutdown is a personal disaster. These are individuals who built their lives around predictable factory shifts — early mornings, packed lunches, long drives through winter snow. Now, their paychecks have disappeared, replaced by a silence that is deafening. The bills remain: mortgages, car loans, rising grocery costs, and heating expenses that continue to climb amid inflationary pressures.