Shutdown Confrontation May Rob Momentum From Debt Debate
By Mike Dorning - Oct 1, 2013
A partisan stalemate that partially shut down the U.S. government may lessen the appetite of lawmakers for risking a debt default later this month.
The potential political and economic blow from the shutdown that began today could sap the will of rank-and-file Republicans in Congress to go through with a second fiscal confrontation with President Barack Obama on the heels of this week’s fight, said Dan Meyer, chief of staff to former Republican House Speaker Newt Gingrich and later a congressional lobbyist for President George W. Bush.
“It has the potential to make a significant difference,” Meyer said. Some Republicans “want to play a little too close to the flame here and, frankly, some of them need to get their fingers singed,” Meyer, now a lobbyist with the Duberstein Group, said. “They’ll start feeling the heat pretty quick.”
The federal government’s first partial shutdown in 17 years began with the new fiscal year at midnight. Legislation to fund the government stalled as congressional Republicans stuck with demands for changes in Obama’s signature 2010 Affordable Care Act. Obama and congressional Democrats refused to go along.
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http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-10-01/shutdown-confrontation-may-rob-momentum-from-debt-debate.html
