This special episode examines what is looking increasingly likely: a federal government shutdown. Unless Congress can pass a continuing budget resolution by September 30, the shutdown will begin on Sunday, October 1.

What would a federal government shutdown mean for people in Oregon and across the nation? Who would be most affected? And what are the deeper policy and ideological differences driving the nation toward a federal government shutdown?

To examine these issues, the Oregon Center for Public Policy’s Executive Director, Alejandro Queral, spoke with someone with decades of experience navigating the halls of Congress: Ellen Nissenbaum, Senior Vice President for Government Affairs at the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities.