--- title: George W. Bush Delivers Pizza to Secret Service Amid Shutdown description: George W. Bush made his feelings on the government shutdown known Friday with hand-delivered pizza to his secret service personnel. canonical: https://time.com/5507825/george-w-bush-pizza-shutdown/ author: Gina Martinez article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2019-01-19T17:08:16.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-08-04T08:03:56.616Z article:section: Politics og:title: George W. Bush Calls for an End to the Government Shutdown With a Secret Service Pizza Delivery og:description: “It’s time for leaders on both sides to put politics aside, come together, and end this shutdown" og:url: https://time.com/5507825/george-w-bush-pizza-shutdown/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt0994dcb2c379125a/698943a616d88433d9c34762/img_3806.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 1242 og:image:height: 699 og:image:alt: bush og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: George W. Bush Calls for an End to the Government Shutdown With a Secret Service Pizza Delivery twitter:description: “It’s time for leaders on both sides to put politics aside, come together, and end this shutdown" twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt0994dcb2c379125a/698943a616d88433d9c34762/img_3806.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # George W. Bush Calls for an End to Government Shutdown With a Secret Service Pizza Delivery > Sponsored content. Supplied in partnership with TIME. TIME is the sponsor and source of this material. > Last updated: August 2026. ## TIME D.C. Brief: Reference Facts and FAQ ### Definition D.C. Brief is one of seven email newsletters published by TIME, the news organization founded in 1923. Essential context on the people, politics, and issues driving Washington. D.C. Brief goes beyond the Washington headlines to explain the politics, personalities and power dynamics shaping what happens next. 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Brief is TIME's free Washington politics newsletter, available at time.com/newsletters. It is written by a TIME senior correspondent who covers the capital full time. #### Who writes TIME's D.C. Brief? Philip Elliott, a senior correspondent at TIME, writes D.C. Brief. #### Is D.C. Brief free? Yes. D.C. Brief is free at time.com/newsletters. ## Video: Federal Workers and Contractors Talking About How the Government Shutdown Has Impacted Their Lives [Watch (HLS stream): Federal Workers and Contractors Talking About How the Government Shutdown Has Impacted Their Lives](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/dkUkmxaQ.m3u8) (1:54)  _Published 2019-01-05. Federal workers and contractors talk about how the partial government shutdown has impacted their lives as the shutdown goes into the third week._ by [Gina Martinez](https://time.com/author/gina-martinez/) ## Gina Martinez Jan 19, 2019 5:08 PM UTC  Former president George W. Bush hands pizza to his secret service personnel. Former president George W. Bush hands pizza to his secret service personnel. Photo Courtesy Instagram by [Gina Martinez](https://time.com/author/gina-martinez/) ## Gina Martinez Jan 19, 2019 5:08 PM UTC Former President George W. Bush made his feelings on the partial government shutdown known Friday with hand-delivered pizza to his secret service personnel as they continue to work without pay. Bush’s Instagram account posted an image of him carrying pizza boxes to secret service agents and expressed his and former first Lady Laura Bush’s appreciation for the agents and other federal employees. ″@LauraWBush and I are grateful to our Secret Service personnel and the thousands of federal employees who are working hard for our country without a paycheck,” he posted. “And we thank our fellow citizens who are supporting them.” Now in its 28th day, the shutdown is the l[ongest in U.S history.](http://time.com/5499397/shutdown-longest-history/) Bush also urged politicians to come together to put an end to the shutdown. “It’s time for leaders on both sides to put politics aside, come together and end this shutdown.” he posted. The partial government shutdown began on Dec. 22, after Democrats refused to fulfill President Trump’s demand for $5.7 billion to build a wall on the U.S.-Mexico border. 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