Shutdown is on House’s hands

Dave Starr, Las Vegas

Tuesday, Oct. 8, 2013 | 2:02 a.m.

The Republican House claims the Senate and president will not negotiate with it. What’s to negotiate? Both Houses of Congress and the president agree we should not shut down the government.

The Republican House uses extortion as a negotiation tool. Their spoiled, childlike behavior has no consideration for the American people. Their ongoing demands: defund Obamacare; delay Obamacare for one year; delay the individual mandate for one year; then make their own staff members use Obamacare, and now they ran out of time. All the Republican House bills were about Obamacare. Obamacare is not a bill up for a vote or debate; it’s the law. It became the law through legitimate voting and was deemed constitutional by the Supreme Court.

The Republican House disrespects the law, the Supreme Court decision and, most important, the American people. The Republican Party single-handedly shut down the United States government. Any other explanation is a lie.

The Republican shutdown is hurting many, including 800,000 people on furlough. The Republican plan seems to be to let the American people suffer, let our staffers see the real world and keep the government “closed” until the nation’s economy, credit-worthiness and reputation are destroyed by refusing to raise our nation’s debt limit. And Republicans want to keep the House in 2014 and to take the presidency in 2016. Good luck with that!