In order to fund the government, Congress needs to figure out what they’re doing with this spending bill. As of today, they still haven’t come up with a solution, leaving the government shutdown for a full week now. This is the first shutdown since that one 17 years ago where Monica Lewinskry single-handedly saved the world, or something like it.
Come October 17th, if still under this shutdown, the government faces a limitation on being able to borrow funds the way we have been. The debt limit needs to be raised and if Congress doesn’t raise the limit, America will default on $16.7 trillion of dollars of debt we’ve accumulated. This sounds awful, right? That’s because it is. It’s being reported that this unprecedented unpaid debt would create a global market chaos. It’s almost like the government’s spending bill and debt limit are merging into one big old messy problem with hardly any solution (that either party wants to submit to) in sight.
Still at the midst of this indecision is House Speaker, John Boehner’s refusal to raise the limit without having a conversation with President Obama about the U.S.’s spending habits. Boehner knows that the U.S. is on the path to an economic crash if he doesn’t raise the debt ceiling, but he says it’s up to Obama at this point. “All he has to do is pick up the phone. I’m ready to talk; I’ve been ready to talk,” Boehner says. “I’m willing to sit down and have a conversation with the president, but his refusal to negotiate is putting our country at risk,” he said.
In an interview that aired on ABC’s “This Week,” Boehner maintained the GOP position that Democrats must agree to partially dismantling or delaying Obamacare as a condition of re-opening the government. The Democrats do not agree, but are willing to negotiate. Democratic Sen. Charles Schumer claims that his party is willing to talk, “This is playing with fire, and we’re happy to negotiate, but we want to negotiate without a gun to our head.”
Let’s hope Republicans and Democrats can come together on this spending bill and fully open the government so that we can all get on with our lives. Can’t we all just get along?!
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