As long as they can still work out, is it really a crisis?
Well,
of course.
Head Start programs have been shuttered, small businesses can’t get loans and hundreds of thousands of federal government employees are furloughed. But the exclusive gyms available only to members of Congress have remained open throughout the shutdown.
A House aide confirmed to ThinkProgress that the House member’s gym is open. The House gym features a swimming pool, basketball courts, paddleball courts, a sauna, a steam room and flat screen TVs. While towel service is unavailable, taxpayers remain on the hook for cleaning and maintenance, which has been performed daily throughout the shutdown. There are also costs associated with the power required to heat the pools and keep the lights on.
Oh, the horror. They'll have to launder their own towels? How in the world will they manage? Apparently, the gym has been deemed essential by none other than House Speaker John Boehner. The Senate gym is also open, but the lack of towel service or perhaps janitorial service has a senator with
delicate sensibilities (cough, Lindsey Graham) disturbed by the odors. Poor babies.
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