Well, absolutely nothing. It is a complete stalemate. Neither party falters or backs down.
Keeping this in mind, it does not mean that the effects aren’t felt elsewhere.
The House majority Republicans are the unstoppable force and President Barack Obama is the unmovable object. Over the years we have seen the GOP and Obama bump heads in fierce fashion. Many of these altercations ended with nothing, or very, very little getting done in Congress. This has been perfectly exemplified with their latest clash.
In the midst of a government shutdown it was crunch time for an agreement to be made between House Republicans and President Obama over the budget. The hours, minutes, and seconds clocked down toward the deadline until it inevitably ended in a stalemate. The government is now literally shutdown.
The Speaker of the House, Boehner, insisted that Obama should budge over funding for the Affordable Care Act but the President refused to bow out.
The GOP remains persistent in their charge against Obamacare. I use the term GOP loosely when referring to the opposition for not all Republicans are taking such a drastic stance against the new Healthcare law. It is the Tea Party members that have adopted the extreme rightest stance.
Fellow Republican John McCain has recognized the sub-party as the perpetrators for not compromising.
The Tea Party’s stance has put House Speaker John Boehner in a tough spot. If he does compromise with Obama he risks losing Tea Party support thus creating a further divide in the GOP.
With Obama standing firm alongside the Affordable Healthcare Act in the face of resilience, Boehner might not have a choice but to work with Democrats.
“The Affordable Care Act is moving forward. You can’t shut it down.” —President Obama #Obamacare
— Barack Obama (@BarackObama) October 1, 2013
The government shutting down is surely a sign of the apocalypse. The second sign perhaps?
Every year British Parliament has a month off. The shutdown might be an elaborate scheme with the ultimate goal of just getting a holiday.
Will congressmen flock to Florida to soak up the rays? Will we see Obama playing golf somewhere in South America? It must be inevitable that Biden and Boehner will be caught sharing a dinner in Paris?
This is not quite the case. The Senate will reconvene at 9:30 a.m., less than ten hours since the government shutdown. Congress will surely work tirelessly for a result as quickly and efficiently as possible.
The shutdown will cause a slight bump in the economy but it won’t be as awful as some assume and not to worry, there won’t be anarchy ruling the streets.
In the winter of 1995, the government had shutdown in similar circumstances. President Bill Clinton faced off with House Speaker Newt Gingrich, an argument primarily over the budget and Medicare.
In three weeks the matter was resolved and government functions resumed. Clinton’s favorability with the public dipped slightly but a few months after the shutdown his approval rose considerably.
The Tea Party members were bold in their effort to delay Obamacare but it backfired big-time. They now run the risk of further disfranchising themselves from other Republicans and alienating themselves within the political sphere.
Tensions in Washington will peak in the next few weeks, but as of right now the only viable option is if Boehner leads enough moderates to seek common ground with President Obama and pass through a budget plan.