Federal Government Shutdown: Some Ignorance with Your Tea?
A government shutdown is what happens when lawmakers can't agree on a budget and don't implement a continuing resolution as a stop-gap measure. A government shutdown is what happened in 1995 and was, by all accounts, disastrous. By all accounts I mean that even the group of Republicans who forced the 1995 shutdown came to regret their actions.
In the current budget cycle, March 4 is doomsday. That is, it will be if lawmakers don't come to their senses, cooperate, and pass a budget. Or continue passing continuing resolutions to keep the government operating.
Since the leadership of both parties shudders at the thought of shutting down the federal government, what could cause it to happen anyway?
Tea party freshman legislators with no institutional memory and little grasp of the budget.
The determination of this core of newly elected Republicans to stand firm on campaign promises to slash the budget by $100 billion has pitted the newbs against their seasoned colleagues. House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) and Budget Committee chair Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) both agree that a shutdown must be avoided, as do Democratic leaders.
But Tea Partiers like Rep. Tim Scott (R-S.C.) brush off their ignorance, even try to tout it as an advantage.
Scott told CNN, "The fact that we may be completely ignorant to the process here, God bless us, because our ignorance just saved the American people more money."
Saving money through ignorance is too much like balancing the budget through ignorance for Americans who remember 1995. Posturing over a balanced budget in the hopes of political gain is what precipitated 1995's universally discredited government shutdown. And it backfired, terribly.
To recap:
The worst of the 1995 government shutdown was probably the uncertainty. Seniors worried about their Social Security checks, lab researchers whether their animals would survive or whether years of painstaking work would be destroyed with the flick of a power switch. Federal workers were sent home; 3.3 million veterans were warned of indefinite benefit check delays. Escape was curtailed by the shuttering of passport offices.
And that's not all. Health services were compromised, with NIH clinical trials declining new patients, the Centers for Disease Control stopping short its disease surveillance and letting hotline calls ring unanswered, and even Superfund site clean-up curtailed.
Shutting down the government would be an act of supreme ignorance even for Tea Party members proud not to deal in facts.
Published by Carol Bengle Gilbert - Featured Contributor in Travel and Lifestyle
2010 Yahoo! Outstanding Contributor of the Year, Carol has consistently been designated a Top 100 Yahoo! Contributor Network writer. She received a 2008 People's Media Award for "Best Article." Carol’s pr... View profile
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15 Comments
Post a CommentI was happily reading your article, nodding sagely, when I realized that it was actually fiction. My clue? "...even the group of Republicans who forced the 1995 shutdown came to regret their actions." Republicans who regret irresponsible, jug-headed stubbornness and peacock grandstanding? Now that's a fairy tale for sure.
This is the republicans' plan to make people hate the present administration. They threaten to shut down the govt., then agree to give in if taxes are cut, or whatever they're agenda happens to be a that particular time.
Next Issue: Anybody who attacks an American Value or Platform of NATIONAL DEPT REDUCTION is just as much "American" as the People advocating more spending or Health Care for the poor. I don't think people that are willing to live within their means should be villafied. We are not Villins or "Stupid-it-Tea". If you are recieving some sort of "Public Tax Dollars" for No Reason, I can understand your attempt to continue the "Status Quo". I feel absolutely informed about the necessity to eliminate The National Debt. I also understand that the steps required to accomplish this mission will be painful. Having said that, I think people who cannot handle such pain are about to "Face Reality".
I am a Tea Party member, but I have a diffrence of opinion on the "Tax Cuts" that were extended for the higher tax brackets. My feeling is this: The tax cuts should end ONLY if every dollar that is collected from the additional revenue is to be directed soley for the purpose of National Dept Reduction. None should be spent. Otherwise, I'm against tax increases. Is this really THAT crazy of an idea?
Yikes!
I just read a piece on cbs news that states the Republican Senate leaders feel that they will be able to reach a compromise with President Obama and Democrats in Congress to keep the government up and running.
Kentucky's Senator Mitch McConnell states that there are two upcoming possibilities for a U.S. Government shutdown: 1) If the Senate or the President refuses to accept the trimmed back 2011 spending plan. If no decision is reached, the federal government could shutdown beginning March 4, 2011.
2) Congress must approve more government debt. If Congress fails to an increase in the federal debt ceiling, the federal government could shut down.
Could he be right?
The right-wing and its Tea Party puppets don't understand that shutting down government shuts down America. But oh, they love their country.
How about shutting down the wars to save the billions being wasted? Ugh. And stop giving millions for military in countries run by dictators. Sickening that the rich are still getting tax cuts while the GOP is trying to cut out programs that keep the poor alive.
Here we go again. People, WRITE your congressman/woman and inform them you are aware the gov makes $14 Trillion a year from investments/income. There is plenty of money to take care of all the services, police, fire, education, etc. And on top of that, write each working household a check for $53,000. Want economic recovery tomorrow?? Abolish the IRS (not a part of the U.S.) and return that money to the people. Use the profits of the govs investments to give every working household a check for $53,000. Economic recovery will happen tomorrow. The MIT professor who advocated this was conveniently swept under the carpet by the Obama regime. Watch Walter J. Burien Jr.'s video about the money the government has and is conveniently hiding. Its called a CAFR. Ask your congressman/woman for a copy of this and watch their face go pale.
OOO, this scares the crap outta me. I like my tea very sweet with lemon, thank you.
:-) Good reporting Carol.