Anyone accessing a federal government agency website during the shutdown may notice an unusual development: overtly political messaging, which has some observers crying foul.

“The Radical Left in Congress shut down the government. HUD will use available resources to help Americans in need,” the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development states in a red banner at the top of its homepage at HUD.gov.

That was just the first agency message, posted hours before Tuesday’s government shutdown. But other agencies quickly followed suit.

The Department of Justice, at Justice.gov, uses less extreme language, but still points a finger in its own message: “Democrats have shut down the government. Department of Justice websites are not currently regularly updated.”

The Small Business Administr

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