Who's To Blame?

The first federal shutdown in 17 years has officially begun as Congress failed to reach an agreement in the final hours last night before the deadline. So far there has been a lot of finger pointing and discussions about whose fault it is. Adam's afternoon update generated a great conversation about the shutdown, and I thought we could continue that conversation with a quick poll.

My question is this....

Who's To Blame?

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As always, we would love to hear your thoughts after you vote.

Every success,
Jeremy Lutz

33 thoughts on “Who's To Blame?

  1. The House has prepared and submitted a budget every year but the government still goes year to year under continuing resolutions. Why?
    “To back up the senator’s claim about congressional inaction on a budget and spending bills, Corker’s office pointed us to two documents compiled by Republicans on the Senate Budget Committee.
    The first was a timeline indicating that the last time the Democratic-led Senate passed a budget was on April 29, 2009. The other document was a status report on all 12 of the annual spending bills that provide funding for federal departments and agencies. According to that document, not one of the 12 spending bills has been considered by the full Senate this year.” http://www.politifact.com/tennessee/statements/2012/sep/28/bob-corker/bob-corker-says-senate-has-not-passed-budget-more-/
    “It had been 14 years since the House, the Senate and the president have all agreed on a bill to fund the government for an entire fiscal year. In the past 26 years, Congress and the president have agreed to a year-long budget only three times, in 1989, 1995 and 1997, according to a report from the nonpartisan Congressional Research Service.” http://abcnews.go.com/blogs/politics/2011/09/continuing-resolutions-the-new-norm/
    What is the result of this irresponsible behavior? “In the 1990s and 2000s government spending stayed about constant at 33-35 percent of GDP, but in the aftermath of the Crash of 2008 spending has jogged up to 40 percent of GDP. 2010s federal spending checked in at over 20 percent of GDP, state spending amounted to 8 to 9 percent of GDP and local spending exceeded 10 percent of GDP. ” http://www.usgovernmentspending.com/us_20th_century_chart.html
    In 2011 the US credit rating was downgraded. http://blog.heritage.org/2013/08/05/two-years-after-downgrade-u-s-credit-rating-hasnt-recovered-and-debt-is-worse/

  2. Just shutting the EPA will add at least 1-2 percent of growth to the economy. Maybe more if it stays shut long enough.

  3. This Ponzi scheme on the American people has been going on for well over a hundred years. Our country is at a tipping point United States of America vs. Ameritopia! The Progressives have been slowly TRANSFORMING our country Policy by Policy and have their perfect puppet in office with his hand picked minions to do his diabolical work. All these scandals and financial crisis are just diversions from their ulterior agenda. So, it does not matter which party you blame because they are really just "two sides of the same coin" they do not serve the American people they serve the rich global elite. We need to take our blinders off and unite together so we can take our country back.

  4. My answer: The Democrats, and their self-righteous minions - the media. Countdown clocks and now duration clocks chronicle the shutdown. The shutdown is ficticious, just like the ramp-out of the Sequester, aimed to hurt the most visible, and provide fodder for the minions to obsess over. They tell the taxpayers that only non-essentail workers are candidates for furlough, and then we find that over 90% of the EPA, OSHA, and other departments are considered non-essential. Then, lets cut-bait and save a BUNCH of tax dollars by eliminating all non-essential positions in the US govt. Are you with me? How many billions would be freed-up to pay for ObamaCare, or some other legacy-claim or re-election ploy for the Democrats to crow about? Isn't that what all this about?
    I'll now dismount the soapbox....

    1. Great point! Non-essential services should be cut to the bone. Perhaps a permanent shutdown is in order. If the Dems cannot cut anything then this may be the only way to cut the size of government. This is all a political game to gain power in the next election of 2014. Power before the people, this is the cry of the ruling class.

    2. Tea Party + Right Wing Radio + FOX TV + Pure hate from a small group of whites " who can not digest the reality that a BLACK MAN sitting in THE WHITE HOUSE " is the perfect storm for dysfunction in Washington D.C...

      Did you ever see Govt shut down during Reagan and Bush era when Democrats had majority... small group of rightwing nuts are hijacking the country and holding 300 million hostage... that is reality in today's Right wing world..

      1. Oh Pat, I'm disappointed in you! You dropped the "Race Card" into an already inflamed political pissing contest. Also, please attend to the following information regarding previous Fed "Shut Downs" that occurred during such "white bread" folks as Gerald Ford, Jimmy Carter,and Ronald Reagan. We ARE an equal opportunity population.
        Past Shutdowns and duration statistics:
        September 30 to October 11, 1976 (10 days)
        September 30 to October 13, 1977 (12 days)
        October 31 to November 9, 1977 (8 days)
        November 30 to December 9, 1977 (8 days)
        September 30 to October 18, 1978 (18 days
        September 30 to October 12, 1979 (11 days)
        November 20 to November 23, 1981 (2 days)
        September 30 to October 2, 1982 (1 day)
        December 17 to December 21, 1982 (3 days)
        November 10 to November 14, 1983 (3 days)
        September 30 to October 3, 1984 (2 days)
        October 3 to October 5, 1984 (1 day)
        And again, I shall dismount the soapbox....

        1. Nonsense. One faction of one party in one house of Congress in one branch of government shut down major parts of the government all because they didn't like one law. Rightwingers in Congress are very similar to “suicide bombers” who have graduated from hostage taking to “trying to blow your children up.”

          1. Check the constitution (That's right Obama Care did away with big parts of it. It's not about health care.) congress is doing it's job controlling purse stings. The Dem's already blew your children up with the $16 trillion + debt! Now Rep's are throwing the shovel away and Obama and Reed are crying like little children cuz they don't get their way. Rep's wanted to fund the government, the Dem's just want to fund a bad law.

      2. When you say Obama is black you are injecting race stupidly into the debate. Obama is mixed race and saying he is black is denying his half white heritage. The real raciest are the dems that try to use race as an argument or an attack. When you point fingers remember to look into the mirror first.

      3. Please stop hiding behind race every time [whomever] can't defend their position with a logical argument. I'm white. I don;t care if the president is white, black ,yellow, red, or purple or even if he's from earth. He's a commie and I don;t accept that from a white, black ,yellow, red, or purple or martians. If I remember correctly, this bill was shoved down everybodys throat and I don;t remember any negotiations or concern about ANYBODY's opinion and I even seem to remember that nobody even read it. - Well I'll say this - anybody who signed a bill without even reading it should be impeached from whatever position they hold regardless if they're white, black ,yellow, red, or purple or martians. If it's Soooooooooooo wonderful, then NO EXEMPTIONS, OK?
        Oh, yeah - and if "it's the law of the land", then why isn;t immigration the law of the land? Oh yeah, I forgot. It is!

        Now who will have the gumption in a year or two when things go seriously south to stand up and say "it was our fault"? - Oh, wait, I know, I'ts George Bush's fault.................................

    1. How can you negotiate with terrorists who are holding 300 million hostage..
      Go and look for better cartoons or read some stuff elsewhere and not at Washington Times..

  5. It is interesting that most of the congress - and the presidency - is occupied by lawyers. And the result of their legislation appears to result in a lawyers full employment condition. For the most part, every law passed ends in a court through one need or another. Shakespeare was prophetic when he scribed, "Comes the revolution, the first thing we do is kill all the lawyers."

    Interesting we never solve problems - we create them, i.e.. if it is running well, lets screw it up

  6. IT TAKE ALL THE FEDERAL AGENCIES TO BE BLAMED FOR THAT SHUT DOWN DUE TO TEAM WORK OF ALL THE DEMOCRATICS STAFFS AND THE REPUBLICIAN STAFFS. WHEN ONE STEP DOWN THE OTHER SHOULDSTEP UP TO SEE AND RESOLVE THE PROBLEMS THAT NEEDS TO BE ADDRESS. THEY ALL HAVE THE POWER TO DO THAT TO SEE HOW THE PEOPLE WILL REACT TO SITUATION WHEN IT NOT WHAT THEY ARE EXPECTING OR THEY ARE PUTTING THE REPUBLICAN PARTY TO THE TEST TO SEE HOW THEY CAN RUN THE COUNTRY IF THE DEMOCRATIC STAFFS WALKOUT WITHOUT AN EXPLANATION.

    THE COUNTRY NEED BOTH TO COME TOGETHER TO BUILD AND STRENGTHEN THE WORLD ECONOMY OF POWERFUL LEADERSHIPS ROLE MODELS FOR THE UNDER DEVELOPED AND OTHER DEVELIOPING COUNTRIES TO LOOK UP TOO FOR EVERYTHING REGARDING THE ECONOMY, FINANCE, RESOURCES, INVESTMENTS AND ENVIRONMENT.

    ESPECIALLY, HEALTH CARE INDUSTRIES AND THE EDUCATIONAL INDUSTRIES OF NEW FUTURES LEADERSHIP ROLES TO LEARN THE UP AND DOWNS OF THE PRESIDENTIAL AND CONGRESS EMPLOYEES AND ROLES AS FERDERAL GOVERNMENT ICONS. THE PLAN A AND PLAN B SHOULD BE IN PLACE AT ALL TIME IN CASE THAT HAPPEN TO ALL FEDERAL STAFFS AGENCIES IN THE WORLD. IT IS A LESSON TO LEARN FROM NOT ONLY AS EMPLOYEES AND EMPLOYERS BUT AS LEADER FOR THE WORLD POPULATION'S WHEN THE LAWMAKERS DOES NOT HEAD TO THE RIGHT DECESION MAKING PROCESS.

  7. The choices you gave for your question show some bias. Almost as if this is designed to show Obama as the cause of the problem. He clearly isn't. This is not even a Republican problem, but rather the Tea Party element which is wealthy and well connected, and are intending to terrorize this country until they get the power they want. As a moderate Republican, I would like to add that many of the Obama haters would eventually regret supporting this group.

    1. Obama is not to blame! The Democrats are the ones to blame. First off they never vetted this so called president. If they had he wouldn't be destroying this country now and he can only destroy this country by being in league with the Democrats and RINO's.
      They warned us that the Normal was out and the Ab-Normal is in. Well they have proved it with all the immoral people they associate with and the same promote their actions. They are filthy evil doers out to destroy the Constitution and Bill of Rights moving us to be enslaved to the UN under a one world government. Your freedom is being destroyed and your laughing all the way to the grave. Communist Progressives acting like kings... I got news this country is BY THE PEOPLE FOR THE PEOPLE AND THEY WILL WIN IN THE END!!

  8. Under normal circumstances, I would have to blame Speaker Boehner for this Shutdown. However this new health care law is clearly flawed and therefore a delay in its implementation for a year is really not asking too much in exchange for a budget and deficit ceiling resolution. President Obama has got to come to grips with the fact that his health care plan as presently constituted is flawed and requires revisions and potentially complete repeal.

  9. Excuse me, but one side refuses to negotiate while the other side has offered proposal after proposal. It's pretty damned clear to me who is to blame!

  10. Obama will negotiate with terrorist in Afghanistan, Iranians, Syrian terrorist but not Republicans.

    1. It is NOT Obama.. It is President Obama... It is NOT Republicans.. It is RIGHTWING TERRORISTS who ae
      holding 300 million hostage...

      1. Pat, to you he is president to others he is a destroyer of everything good and lovely. Where are the jobs? Where is the promised recovery of our economy? Where are the righteous acts of a good president? What happened in Benghazi? Where is the promised captured perpetrators? Where is the lower gas prices? When are the immigration laws going to be obeyed? When will the IRS be held accountable? When will we here the truth for a change?
        We already heard... it's Bush's fault. When are YOU going to take responsibility for your actions.
        Oh, where is the balanced budget you promised?

  11. Look at the market reaction, Dow up by 50+++ Points and Gold up by $ 5+++

    Can anybody explain me? how and why this happened? what is the calculation or logic behind this? and finally, is it true or fair? and up to which extend?

    1. I know I can't Rasesh, but I had a feeling last night after the Govt. shutdown that the market would be up today. lately everytime we get good news the market drops and then rises on bad news it seems.

      Doesn't make a whole lotta sense does it?

      Cheers,
      Jeremy

      1. Dear Jeremy,

        Thanks for feed-back, you are right, market always provide advance action, and later, discounts every situation. But i doubt this kind of immediate reaction, and now, we may found some different picture.

        With Regards,
        Rasesh

      2. Der Jermy,

        That was some wrong posting through the name of Mr. campbell.

        Rasesh

  12. They just either just don't know, or just don't care of the reactions of their actions- now what more we expect from them?

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