US braces for possible government shutdown Obama warns US may default on its debt budget crises

Analysis :

President Obama is all too aware that time is running out – so he’s using that time to appeal once again to Congress in what’s become a familiar drama here in Washington.

He warned a shutdown would throw a wrench into the gears of the economy, just as those gears were gaining traction.

In a pointed attempt to shame Republicans in Congress, perhaps in the hope that making them feel guilty might make them change their minds, he asked them to think about who they’re hurting.

“There are probably young people in your office right now who came to work for you without much pay because they believed that public service was noble,” he said. “You’re preparing to send them home without a paycheque.”

If the government does shut down on 1 October, as many as a third of its 2.1 million employees are expected to stop work – with no guarantee of back pay once the deadlock is resolved.

National parks and the Smithsonian museums in the nation’s capital would close, pension and veterans’ benefit cheques would be delayed, and visa and passport applications would be stymied.

Programmes deemed essential, such as air traffic control and food inspections, would continue.

The defence department has advised employees that uniformed members of the military will continue on “normal duty status”, but “large numbers” of civilian workers will be told to stay home.

Last week, the US House of Representatives a bill that would maintain the US government’s funding levels through 15 November but strip funding from Mr Obama’s health law, known as Obamacare.

On Friday the Senate passed a version of the bill with the defunding provision removed 54-44, largely on party lines.

“The Senate has acted and we’ve done it with bipartisan co-operation. We’ve passed the only bill that can avert a government shutdown Monday night,” Democratic Senate leader Harry Reid said.

“This is it, time is gone.”Continue reading the main story