Republicans to shut the government down?

Post date: Dec 04, 2010 1:59:35 PM

You need to know this. Many incoming Republican freshman members - as well as old guard figures within the party - are promising to deliver on their threat to shut down the government. That is - despite the devastating effects it could have on - not only our economy - but the financial stability of the entire world. If Republicans choose not to increase the debt ceiling early next year - a move supported by the Tea Party and an increasing number of GOP lawmakers - including the second most powerful member of the caucus - Eric Cantor - then the government will indeed shut down. The last time Republicans shut the government down - back in 1995 and 1996 - it cost taxpayers $800 million. So what are the consequences if the Republicans do it again? The Center for American Progress released a report on this issue. First - over 40% of the government will stop working. That means no Social Security payments - no Medicare coverage - no unemployment insurance - no funding for our troops in combat overseas - and no homeland security. Sound like a place you want to be? Second - defaulting on our national debt could cause a run on our Treasury bonds. In other words - all the countries that we owe money to - like China - could immediately ask for their money back. It would be like a run on the banks - but instead - a run on the US economy. On top of that - the credit worthiness of our country would plummet - leading to higher borrowing costs and guess what - a larger deficit and national debt. Finally - the government is responsible for about a fifth of the spending in our economy. If that money is suddenly sucked out - then we might as well brace ourselves for the second Great Depression. There you have it - the Republicans plan to fix our economy.