A heated debate is expected on Capitol Hill this week as the threat of a government shutdown looms over Washington.
Republicans and Democrats in Congress have failed to compromise on a new budget, and if they fail to find common ground by the end of the week, the US government will stop operating.While both political parties are eager to reign in the soaring national debt, differences in political ideologies have prevented lawmakers from agreeing on the best way forward. Many Americans are disappointed that Congressional members have failed to find a solution.“Everyone should be able to compromise,” argued Washington DC resident Danielle Molder.“There’s got to be a middle ground that would at least prevent the government from shutting down.”If this gridlock continues, American taxpayers who rely on various government services will be the ones suffering in reality.“It’s unacceptable that the federal government would even need to come to this,” said Doug Markesey, visiting from New York.Americans will be keeping a close eye on negotiations from Capitol Hill, wondering if their elected representatives will be able to put aside partisan politics and pass a new budget.Dan Faraci, the president of Grassroots PC argued there is certainly a possibility the US government will shut down, and politics professor Caroline Heldman from Occidental College argued there is a 50 percent chance it will happen.“There doesn’t seem to be much chance for a compromise at this point,” said Faraci.“We’ve got 87 new freshman Republicans who identify with the Tea Party who want bigger cuts than Democrats are willing to make,” said Heldman, explaining the disagreements. The question that remains is whether the two parties will take the political risk of allowing the government to stop in order to hold out on their desired cuts. Had a budget been passed by the Democratic Party in 2010, today’s debate would not exist. A budget would already be in place. Neither side however ants a shutdown. Recent polls indicated American would blame both republicans and Democrats if the government is forced into a shutdown. The Tea Party however is seeking massive cuts with no willingness to compromise. They are willing to sacrifice government operations to have their way, or no way at all.