bcp
In My Opinion
and your reason for pointing out the Republican majority Houses was?????
Will the govt shut down?
- Thread starter 2Loquacious
- Start date
and your reason for pointing out the Republican majority Houses was?????
Pete
Repete
This is crap. They will learn nothing. The spinning and the chest beating will continue. That is the thing about the federal government, it is Teflon. The first rule is; Americans have the memory of a tit mouse, 3 months from now no one will remember or care. Rule 2 is; Nothing sticks because they finger point, deny and blame to the point of utter confusion.
Half of America is severely partisan like you. The conservative half actually believe the GOP is NEVER at fault, the other half is like nonno who believe the donks are never at fault. The rest are ambivalent, or will scatter the blame. In the end it will be business as usual except some poor people will get screwed because a bunch of effing jackass crybabies are acting like jerk offs.
Seat swap? You need to sit back in your Archie Bunker chair and ponder this thought; Half or more of Americans ARE liberals and will vote and be liberals no matter what happens. It is a fact, it will not change and because of this 45% or more of the make up of congress will be liberals. Why do you think the GOP has moved left in the last 25 years? Because THEY know it too and they wanted to stay in the game. The sway factor in there is what will make a majority in the House. Senate, different story, they Richard Byrd it. They get in and as long as they don't get caught blowing interns in a coat room they will stay until they quit.
Blame Obama? He is the chief executive but this was building for decades and the blame is to be shared. Hanging this all on Obama and trying to get political traction with it is EXACTLY why we are facing this mess. In the old days smart men from both sides went into a room and did business. Now it is a bunch of meely mouthed actors playing a dramatic game of gross overhype to screw the other side. "Eff the American people if I can make the donks look bad"
We have become a bunch of "advertisment lemmings" who sit in front of TV's or the internet, mouth agape, stare fixed and we buy the most effective catch phrase or spin.
Think the shut down will be good for the GOP? Ask Newt Gingrich how good it was back in 95. It was the straw that got perhaps the most brilliant political mind to sit in congress since the 50's run out of town on a rail....and who was a member of the brigade of GOPers who helped run him out of town? John Boehner was.
awpitt
Main Streeter
Pete, Very well put. I can't argue with a single thing you said here. It's gotten to the point that no one on Capital Hill gives a sh!t about us and Obama is to blame as well. There should be some real statutary consequences for all of them if they don't have each FY budget passed by Sep 30th of each year. Something like the govt get disolved and special elections are called or maybe even lock down. They're all confined to the House/Senate chamber until the entire FY budegt is passed and sent to the POTUS for signature.
thurley42
HY;FR
+1 for Pete
awpitt
Main Streeter
At best, a one week extension so they can keep bickering.
Pete
Repete
It will shut down Friday night. They will go into a room and negotiate out a deal. The topic of negotiation will NOT be the budget and what is good for America however it will be "OK we have backed each other into a corner. Neither side can screw the other and now we both could get hosed so how do we both get out and save face." THAT is the deal that will be struck Sunday night and the government will continue Monday.
migtig
aka Mrs. Giant
From what I've seen, they have to have some kind of an agreement in place by midnight tonight to vote on Friday. The Republicans have proposed today another week extension (with budget cuts) and the Dems have said no.
http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/04/05/usa-budget-idUSN0511239920110405
http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/04/05/usa-budget-cantor-idUSWEN050220110405
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migtig
aka Mrs. Giant
Obama, GOP Prep Shutdown Plans - The Daily Beast
excerpt:
Government leaders are taking the threat of a shutdown seriously: The White House has instructed agency officials to share details of shutdown contingency plans with top managers, while the GOP will begin distributing pamphlets to lawmakers about how a shutdown will work. House Speaker John Boehner has rejected the Democrats’ proposal of $33 billion, saying it is “not enough.” He will meet President Obama at the White House Tuesday, but will arrive late, after the meeting has already started. The Washington Post says that in order for a shutdown to be avoided, a deal must be made by Tuesday night.
Details and deadlines test budget negotiators - The Washington Post
excerpt:
After weeks of negotiating over money, time is now also a major concern. There is general agreement that the two sides must work out a deal by Tuesday night if it is to work its way through both chambers and reach President Obama’s desk before the government runs out of money Friday.
excerpt:
If lawmakers cannot reach an agreement, the first federal government shutdown since the mid-1990s would start Saturday and the full impact would be felt on Monday, when millions of federal employees across the country would typically report for work.
excerpt:
According to a House rule Boehner put in place this year, no bill can come to a vote until members have had three days to read it — leaving almost no time for the Senate to act if the House could not approve its version until late Friday or over the weekend.
excerpt:
Government leaders are taking the threat of a shutdown seriously: The White House has instructed agency officials to share details of shutdown contingency plans with top managers, while the GOP will begin distributing pamphlets to lawmakers about how a shutdown will work. House Speaker John Boehner has rejected the Democrats’ proposal of $33 billion, saying it is “not enough.” He will meet President Obama at the White House Tuesday, but will arrive late, after the meeting has already started. The Washington Post says that in order for a shutdown to be avoided, a deal must be made by Tuesday night.
Details and deadlines test budget negotiators - The Washington Post
excerpt:
After weeks of negotiating over money, time is now also a major concern. There is general agreement that the two sides must work out a deal by Tuesday night if it is to work its way through both chambers and reach President Obama’s desk before the government runs out of money Friday.
excerpt:
If lawmakers cannot reach an agreement, the first federal government shutdown since the mid-1990s would start Saturday and the full impact would be felt on Monday, when millions of federal employees across the country would typically report for work.
excerpt:
According to a House rule Boehner put in place this year, no bill can come to a vote until members have had three days to read it — leaving almost no time for the Senate to act if the House could not approve its version until late Friday or over the weekend.
GWguy
*
I've read most of the 'politico-speak' in these articles, just looking for the general consensus here. This comment above kind of says it.... time is short and they may just not get it thru in time, if at all.
The shutdown won't affect me directly, but I feel for all those who may not be at work on Monday.
belvak
Happy Camper
I've read most of the 'politico-speak' in these articles, just looking for the general consensus here. This comment above kind of says it.... time is short and they may just not get it thru in time, if at all.
The shutdown won't affect me directly, but I feel for all those who may not be at work on Monday.
That would be me.
Tilted
..
I also agree to a large extent with what Pete said.
I have some questions regarding the bold-ed part though. I ask them mainly because I think a little more discussion of this subject might help dispel some misunderstandings of the budget process that I've sensed from some of the comments I've read (not necessarily from you).
When you refer to passing a budget, are you referring to the annual budget resolution (i.e. the thing that the Senate, unlike in previous years, failed to pass last year)? Or, are you referring to each and every one of the (13) appropriations bills that need to be passed each year (or, in the alternative, an omnibus appropriation bill that would take the place of them)?
If the former, I'd point out that the timely passage of a budget resolution wouldn't (and hasn't in the past) prevent(ed) the situation we face now involving potential government shut downs needing to be averted by a parade of continuing resolutions. Annual budget resolutions don't appropriate money, they don't even have force of law any more than, say, the President's budget proposal. They are, in essence, just plans. This situation isn't the result of the Senate failing to pass a budget resolution last year.
Rather, this situation (and the similar situations that we've faced numerous times in the last decade) is the result of Congress not having passed (and the President not having signed) one or more of the needed year-long appropriations bills (in this case, I believe all of them). If those appropriations bills aren't passed, or they only provide budget authority for part of the fiscal year, then continuing resolutions are needed to keep the needed budget authority coming. I don't think a law requiring Congress to pass such appropriations bills by a certain date, under threat of dissolving Congress, would be effective. It would be too easy for them to get around. Even if they couldn't reach agreement on all of the details, they could pass appropriations bills that were, to some extent, just shells - that didn't really provide most of the needed budget authority. Then, they could come back and pass supplemental appropriations bills when they wanted to or when they reached agreements. For practical purposes, we'd still face the same situation - the potential for government shut downs - to the extent they couldn't agree.
ylexot
Super Genius
Require a 2/3 majority for all supplemental appropriations bills and limit the total amount of supplementals to 50% of the original appropriations bill.
Tilted
..
That might work to some extent, but (if their jobs were on the line) they could include the bulk of the needed funding in the original appropriations bills - just not the last portion that is in dispute (on most things, they agree up to a large portion of the overall amount). They could also just vote to change the law if they wanted to.
ylexot
Super Genius
That's fine. It still limits what they can do later and makes it much more difficult. Disputed things are far less likely to get passed when 2/3 vote is required.
They could also just vote to change the law if they wanted to.
Yeah...that's why I'd make it a Constitutional Amendment (since we're dreaming).
migtig
aka Mrs. Giant
Shut down looking more likely. It appears we have reached a stalemate, and it's time to play "chicken".
No Deal Reached
excerpt:
The likelihood of a government shutdown appeared to increase Tuesday after Speaker John Boehner's office said a meeting between congressional leaders at the White House did not resolve the standoff over funding the government for the rest of the year.
excerpt:
Cantor said the resolution shows House Republicans are serious about avoiding a shutdown, but the White House rejected the offer, and House Minority Whip Steny Hoyer (D-Md.), who had supported two earlier stopgap measures, said he would oppose this one.
No Deal Reached
excerpt:
The likelihood of a government shutdown appeared to increase Tuesday after Speaker John Boehner's office said a meeting between congressional leaders at the White House did not resolve the standoff over funding the government for the rest of the year.
excerpt:
Cantor said the resolution shows House Republicans are serious about avoiding a shutdown, but the White House rejected the offer, and House Minority Whip Steny Hoyer (D-Md.), who had supported two earlier stopgap measures, said he would oppose this one.