After trying to negotiate with House Republicans about how to end the government shutdown yesterday, the Obama administration has still not made any progress. The Senate suggested reopening the government and raising the federal debt limit for three months, which were closer to Obama's terms. The White House has said that there is the potential for progress to be made in negotiations which would allow Obama to reopen the federal government and resume fixing the economy. However, this statement has not received much clarification as the House Speaker, John A. Boehner, left the Capitol without speaking to reporters.
Both sides have a different view of the meeting. The Republicans see it as a negotiations. However, Obama has publicly and privately stated that he would not negotiate over the federal debt. Today, Obama is expected to host a meeting with the Senate minority leader, Mitch McConnell. The House has stated that it would negotiate on November 22 but would not agree to end the shutdown.
It is a wonder how the government has come to this point. One wonders if, at this rate, the government will even reopen in the year of 2013. Our current politicians need to understand that this shutdown has the potential to cripple America's economy. However, they are too involved in disagreement and will not budge. I once saw an internet movie critic named Doug Walker that delivered this statement when reviewing a movie: "I've just realized the problem with this movie. There's no story. It's just explaining... it's just explaining and fighting, and I get enough of that from my own government!" This statement definitely holds true to this situation. At the very least, we all can at least tell our children that we lived through this event in American history and just laughed at the incompetence of our politicians.
I love how you brought in a reference to something in pop culture. And I'm glad you can see the long-haul perspective of politics.
ReplyDelete