Let me start with, I am nothing but sympathetic to the workers
that the shutdown would impact financially.
While I think a stoppage of Federal activity would do a lot
of businesses who depend on the taxpayers for their existence a chance to
rethink the wisdom of that business model, anyone who would not get a paycheck
in the event of a shutdown would have my sympathy.
Sadly, this is all going to be over political posturing
rather than an actual attempt to look at the SIZE of our government and maybe
make some CHANGES.
The chances of averting a partial shutdown of the federal
government seemed to vanish Sunday as leading members of Congress blamed their
opponents for being unwilling to come to an agreement on a spending bill keep
government operations running.
Bipartisan accord did seem likely on at least one point:
that the Senate will concur to a bill passed by the House Saturday night that
would ensure that members of the Armed Forces get paid even if there is a
partial government shutdown.
That bill also ensures that civilian Defense Department
personnel, Department of Homeland Security personnel, and outside military
contractors whose jobs involve support of active-duty military members would
also get paid as they normally do.
“Why won't the
president negotiate and come to a compromise about trying to make Obamacare
less bad?" asked Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., on CBS’s Face the Nation.
The Kentucky conservative said that Obama was “the one
saying, ‘I will shut down government if you don't give me everything I want on
‘Obamacare.’ That, to me, is the president being intransigent and being
unwilling to compromise.”
As much as I like Senator Paul, both sides are guilty of
drawing lines in the sand.
While he has taken it to record heights, Obama did not
invent deficit spending. The government has lived beyond its means for a long
time.
While I think a long hard look needs to be taken at where
the government spends money, I wonder whether the military, many who live on
bases and are provided meals, should be paid in favor of other Federal employees
who are the sole source of support for their families.
As usual, the Federal government is making a decision for
the photo op rather than thinking through the implications. They get to put on
their misty-eyed face and say “the members of our armed forces who are placing
their lives on the line” and conjure images of soldiers huddled on a
battlefield and win over a largely jingoistic and warmongering voting block.
Meanwhile, a Federal file clerk being paid a government
salary will have to figure out how to buy groceries during a shutdown.
I wonder-will the Senate and Congress still be paid? What about
the White House staff?
Maybe if these idiots had to tighten their belts a little we’d
see some progress.
The truth is, I do not believe Obamacare will be defunded, nor do I believe the government will shut down.
The opinion on whether or not Obamacare is a good thing is split almost equally on party lines. There is no mandate from the people either way.
And quite frankly, if the government were to shut down for an extended period, I think Washington knows there is enough intelligence left in America that the people would figure out they don't really need them.
Now if we could just get the television networks to shut down at the same time...
