“A proud man is seldom a grateful man, for he never thinks he gets as much as he deserves” – Henry Ward Beecher Edelman Defends Nation’s Children See Page 27 •
C e l e b r a t i n g 4 8 Ye a r s o f S e r v i c e
•
Serving More Than 50,000 African American Readers Throughout The Metropolitan Area / Vol. 48, No. 51 Oct. 3 - Oct. 9 2013
Democratic, GOP Squabbling Leads to Government Shutdown By Barrington M. Salmon WI Staff Writer
Speaker of the House John Boehner, R-Ohio, flanked by members of his staff, exit the Capital building, Monday, September 30, having been unable to reach a compromise on the language of the Obamacare funding bill that would have avoided a federal government shutdown. / Photo by Khalid Naji-Allah
Timothy Heath*, a 40-year-old federal government employee, has had a front-row seat to the wrestling match between Democratic and Republican Congressional leaders for months. As the two factions spar for supremacy over a spending bill and other political issues, Heath said the thrusts and parries, finger pointing, accusations and recriminations, had done little more than lead the nation to the inevitable: In inability to agree on legislation that would fund the government and a government shutdown. So on Tuesday morning instead of being at work on Capitol Hill, Heath was home in bed. “I expected the government to close down because they kept delaying the budget,” said the Maryland resident, who requested anonymity for fear of losing his job. “I think both sides were holding their ground. Democrats made it clear early that they would stand their ground and Republicans played hardball.” “I was at work until 12:30 this morning waiting to see if they’d make a deal, tying up loose ends,” he said. “People are disgusted, frustrated and worried about paying their rent. This is an expensive city. They’re talking about how they’re gonna pay
Visit us online for daily updates and much more @ www.washingtoninformer.com. Common Good City Farm Aids Local Families Page 4
Obamacare Registration Tips Page 24
their bills.” Heath said he, like many of his co-workers blame the Republicans for the shutdown and financial uncertainty of the nation. “They are trying to hold the nation hostage to have [certain] language removed from the spending bill; that’s terroristic,” Heath said. It’s estimated that the employees will lose $1 billion a week and the shutdown could cost $55 billion a month overall. Heath said he has some money stashed away so he’s not in a dire predicament yet. “It depends on how long the standoff drags on,” he explained. “Right now it’s a standoff. It depends on who’s willing concede. The government’s closed and now it’s a political staring contest. Whoever blinks first is the loser. I don’t think it will end in a couple of days. It probably will last a week or longer.” The federal government shutdown at midnight Monday, the first in 17 years. More than 800,000 federal employees were home Tuesday morning and an additional 1.3 million were working without the prospect of getting paid. Almost 400 national parks, Smithsonian museums and the National Zoo are closed. With the government shuttered, government operations were slowed or stopped. About
Follow us on
Bill Pickett’s Rodeo Highlights Pages 30-31
See SHUTDOWN on Page 8 and on DCTV 95 & 96