DON DOKKEN Blasts Longest Government Shutdown In U.S. History: 'It's A Crazy World, Man'

In a new interview with Artists On Record With Stefan Adika, DOKKEN leader Don Dokken lamented the fact that the recent shutdown of the federal government forced U.S. air traffic controllers to work without pay because they are employed by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and are considered essential employees. As a result, the number of controllers calling in sick had gone up, forcing flight delays and cancelations. Don said in part (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): " Everything's kind of changed now. And politics, we had a new president in office. People were getting fired everywhere in the government. [We had] the longest shutdown in government history. I mean, people are working for free. My son's a pilot, and he flies a big [Airbus] 320 [plane for United Airlines] — that's the big jumbo — and I ask him, 'What's going on?' He goes, 'It's pretty crazy when you only have two flight controllers' and he is supposed to have four. Well, something's gonna happen. There's gonna be an accident. And he said, 'Yeah, it's pretty crazy out here.'

Don continued: "[My son] tells me these stories. He'll have close calls. He said, 'Dad, whatever they're telling you on the news, they're lying.' Near miss. Near miss. He goes, 'That's happening every couple of hours.' And I said, 'Whoa.' So he likes flying from L.A. to China or L.A. to Sydney, Australia — 17 hours — 'cause you're up higher and you got more way to get out of somebody's way. He goes, 'But the airports are crazy,' man. The flights are canceled. Then people, he says, get on board, they're all pissed off. They've been sitting in an airport for six hours. He said it's not fun up there. But that's his job, and he has to deal with it. And he says sometimes somebody will tell him to do something, and somebody forgets 'cause there's nobody at the station in the flight control tower. They're out taking a leak or something. And that's screwed up. And that's the government's fault. The government's the one that's not paying them. And you have to laugh. The TSA [Transportation Security Administration] is not getting paid. The flight controllers aren't getting paid, but the government's paying themselves still. They're getting paid. And I'm, like, 'Wait a minute. So Congress and the Senate are getting paid.' But things that are more important, I would think, like crashing two planes into each other at 40,000 feet, that should be more of a priority, wouldn't you think? Look at JFK and Newark and LAX — I mean, there's thousands of plane nonstop landing and taking off. It's just gonna take one little screw-up for something to happen. And the stress on those flight control tower people, the stress on them is heavy. All of a sudden they're not coming to work. They're not coming to work now 'cause they weren't getting paid. And people have bills, people have families. People like that are important. The police department need to get paid. And then you find out that the government's paying themselves, though, every week."

Asked what goes through his mind nowadays when he has to fly to DOKKEN gigs, Don said: "I'm just looking out the window usually and going, 'Well, if it's gonna happen, it's gonna happen.' I don't worry too much about it. But now that we're doing this weekend-warrior stuff and not using the tour bus, yeah, it's a little… I've been stuck on this tarmac for five hours. Pull away from the gate, get out on the runway. We are the 20th plane in line. It's just a line of planes trying to take off, and I'm, like, 'Holy shit.' Yeah, it's not real comforting."

Don continued: "[Ex-DOKKEN guitarist] George Lynch has been coming out and playing with us with LYNCH MOB and warming up for us, and then he comes on stage with me, and then we play a couple songs together. And he's driving to a lot of the gigs. And I said, 'Dude, what do you mean you're driving? That's an eight-hour drive. He goes, 'I'm not getting on no small plane.' He won't. And I tried to tell him, 'You should talk to my son, 'cause my son's a pilot,' and explain to him that it's safer than driving. But George has a big thing about flying too. He drives. And I'm, like, 'That's a lot of driving, man, when you can hop on a plane for one hour and be there. And instead you're in a van, and you're driving for eight hours. And then you get there and you're beat up and you're worn out and you're tired. And it's a crazy world, man. It's just a crazy world."

On November 12, U.S. president Donald Trump signed a bill into law officially bringing an end to the 43-day federal government shutdown, the longest shutdown in U.S. history.

As a result of the shutdown, many government services had been suspended since October, and around 1.4 million federal employees had been on unpaid leave or working without pay.

Back in September 2023, Dokken, who moved to New Mexico several years ago after living in Los Angeles much of his life, offered his views on the political situation in America, particularly as it pertained to the 2024 presidential election, telling Ernest Skinner of Canada's Border City Rock Talk: "I used to watch our local [television] station. And, of course, there was always the battle between Fox News and CNN. Fox News was, like, 'Trump, Trump, Trump, Trump, Trump, Trump, Trump.' And then CNN was more liberal. And now I can't turn it on. Every five minutes, 'Trump, Trump, Trump, Trump.' Trump must be laughing his ass off 'cause he's getting millions and millions of dollars in free press. This guy's got, like — what? — 29 felonies against him, and he's running for president. But if one of those he gets convicted of, you can't be a president with a felony. He's trying to push it all back till after the election. But then I look and it says that there's eight people running [for president] in America. [Their support is] 2%, 3%, 4%, 5%, Trump 49 [percent], Biden 50 [percent]. So it looks like it's going to come down to our senile president or Trump. And if Trump wins, I'm moving. I'm going to France… And I'm serious. I've been looking. I'm gonna buy a home in France and get the hell out of here."

Don also addressed the fact that Congress was steadily getting older, with the average age of lawmakers steadily increasing over the last four decades in particular.

"Our laws should be changed," he said. "When you see the Congress and senators and congressmen, they're all 80 years old. No — there should be a term limit of four years or something like that.

"We have a channel here in America, and you can watch the Congress and you can see all these people. And you see the camera pan around. It looks like they're all ready to drop dead any minute, and they can't talk without a teleprompter.

"We have to amend our Constitution and amend the laws," he continued. "I don't think anybody 80 years old should be passing laws about abortion — pro life, against life, it's not right. Everybody should have their own decision, not some geezer that's suffering from Alzheimer's."

Dokken went on to speak in more detail about access to the procedure since the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade. "I said, well, what happens if a woman gets raped by five guys and she's 18? She is forced to have that baby and raise that baby the rest of… Her life is ruined — ruined," Don said. "She's raped. She doesn't know what the father is. And now we've all banned it in America and over 40 states that no more abortion. And I'm, like, who would have thought that would happen? And they have to drive to another state that's still legal or to go into an alley and get an underground doctor. It's not right… But you have the Bible thumpers and the hardcore right and the Christians saying, 'God decides. You can't terminate a baby.' And I'm, like, 'She was raped. And she's 16. Her life is ruined. She has the right to get an abortion.'"

Don added: "These are the things that upset me. But I realize maybe I am to blame somewhat because I just dropped out and moved out of L.A. I live up in the mountain in the middle of nowhere and no neighbors. I'm just watching the world unravel."

Dokken also discussed his need to use his voice to speak out on political issues in a polarized society where a political stance can alienate half the fanbase.

"I have a half million followers on Facebook," he said. "So what I say some people take the heart. But I'm not trying to change the world. Everybody has to make up their own mind. And then [when I say something] political, I get attacked because you've got half the United States [that] love Donald Trump. So if I say anything negative against him, then I've got half a million of people to say, 'Screw you.' I don't know what to say."

He added: "We talked about it on the road. I say, sometimes I feel like I'm overeducated because I know what's going on."

In June 2020, Don told Myglobalmind that DOKKEN's follow-up to 2012's "Broken Bones" album would include a song he wrote about Trump.

"We are about halfway done with the record, and a lot of my lyrics are about what is going on now," he said at the time. "Whether you are a fan of Trump or not, I see him as a little unhinged and trying to take over the planet, so I wrote a song called 'Hail To The King' about him. He has a king mentality.

"I'm not a political person at all — I don't get involved in politics — but when you see the craziness of the government and the guy firing his people daily, like the attorney general and the prosecutor, it's bizarre," he laughed. "I wrote a tongue-in-cheek song about a guy who is running the country and feels he has no limitations or rules. That he can do whatever he wants like a king."

DOKKEN released its 13th studio album, "Heaven Comes Down", in October 2023 via Silver Lining Music. The LP was produced by Bill Palmer and Don Dokken and was mixed by Kevin Shirley (AEROSMITH, IRON MAIDEN).