The foolishness of the partial government shutdown has continued now for over a week, and although there is a proposal to raise the debt ceiling for six weeks the shutdown will persist if a Republican plan is endorsed. John Boehner, the Speaker of the House of Representatives is quoted, by Michael McAuliff in an article for the Huffington Post entitled “Republicans Offer Short-Term to Raise Debt Limit, Leave Government Shutdown,” as this plan being a show of good will toward United States of America President Barrack Obama.
“I would hope that the president will look at this as an opportunity and a good-faith effort on our part to move halfway, halfway to what he’s demanding in order to have these conversations,” said Boehner with a straight face, which should be laughable if it were not so tragic.
What Boehner, and others in his party he is speaking for, seem to fail to notice is that people he is supposed to represent are suffering as a direct result of their political machinations.
However, it is not only the actions of Boehner and others of his ilk who would allow people to suffer so their political ideology can stand.
President Obama, according to an Associated Press article entitled “Food Bank Helps Furloughed Grand Canyon Workers,” rejected offers of private and public money to keep the park open. The article reveals people who technically have jobs need help feeding their families. It also shows it is not only governmental employees who are furloughed taking a hit, but all the businesses which rely on tourism the national parks generate. The same is true of all businesses where furloughed employees would spend a portion of their paycheck – if they had money coming in.Granted this is only 10 days and counting, but one day is too much.
Grand Canyon employees are not the only ones who are having to turn to a food bank for assistance according to an article by Mike Conneen for ABC7 entitled “Government Shutdown 2013: Church Food pantry helps furloughed workers.”
The lives of those who are not federal employees are being impacted, or potentially so, in ways which could be downright dangerous. Currently, the Centers for Disease Control and the Nuclear Regulatory Commission have furloughed employees. There are people staffing them who are deemed essential, but whenever there are fewer hands and eyes around to check for problems, more things can slip through the cracks. The Food and Drug Administration was also furloughed until the House and Senate passed a bill to fund them during the shutdown. Similarly, Congress took pains to once again offer death benefits to military families and, according to an Associated Press article entitled, “States to be Allowed to pay to reopen some national parks during government shutdown,” Obama is also backing down from his stance.
On Oct. 2, 1789, John Adams, the second president of our country, wrote, “There is nothing which I dread so much as a division of the republic into two great parties, each arranged under its leader, and concerting measures in opposition to each other. This, in my humble apprehension, is to be dreaded as the greatest political evil under our Constitution.”
Political parties should never endanger the lives of citizens simply to advance their political stances. It is the exact opposite of what our representatives are elected to do.