This really stinks.

It started with a nasty infestation. Back in 2010, folks suddenly realized that much of the Eastern United States had been overrun by a swarm of dime-sized, shield-shaped, hard-skinned, flying beetles. They had spread across the landscape and taken up residence in buildings, cars, and houses. They were eating just about every domesticated crop they could find. And most annoyingly, when they were caught or crushed, they gave off a nasty smell like moldy socks which seemed to attract more of their kind. Yep, it was Halyomorpha halys, the Brown Marmorated Stink Bug, a pest recently arrived from China. And folks were smelling a big problem. “I’ve never seen such a serious pest enter the U.S. agricultural system,” said Tracy Lesky, research entomologist with the West Virginia-based Appalachian Fruit Research Station, “if only because they attack so many crops.”

This summer, scientists set out to get to the bottom of the problem. At the U.S. Department of Agriculture Appalachian Fruit Research Station in West Virginia, a team of over 50 entomologists set out to better understand the Stink Bug invasion. They enlisted hundreds of volunteers across the Mid-Atlantic to count the bugs, determine what kinds plants they prefer eating, and how they live and reproduce. Hopefully a weak spot in the bugs’ life pattern could be found. Most critically, between September 15 and October 15, the scientists were scheduled to audit what structures the bugs are choosing for their winter habitations. They planned to analyze such factors as building colors, elevation levels and what types of plants surround a building. The goal is to figure out which structures the bugs prefer, restrict them from successfully over-wintering, and wipe them out before spring arrives.

Unfortunately, there some things in this life that are nastier than a plague of foul-smelling insects. And one of those things is a Senator from the state of Texas. On October 1, when Ted Cruz and his cohorts in Congress decided to protest the Affordable Care Act, much of the federal government was furloughed until further notice. Including the entire leadership of the Stink Bug research project, right as they were collecting their final critical data. The study’s website is offline due to the lapse in federal government funding. Tracy Lesky’s email reads “I am on furlough without access to email.”

Right about now, billions of Stink Bugs are happily bedding down for the winter. They are nestling into hay lofts in Pennsylvania. Tucking into warm dairy barns in Virginia . And yes, crawling in your bathroom window and helping themselves to your hospitality. And nobody’s going to stop them. All thanks to Senator Cruz.

Moldy smells. Billions of dollars of damage. Mindless devastation. This is what you get when you don’t protect yourself from vermin.