Reflections on the Government Shutdown

Unless we learn from the past, we are likely to repeat it. We need to avoid another government shutdown, more short-term compromises, and last minute deals. The cost of the last impasse was $24 billion dollars to the economy and long-term damage to vulnerable persons in our society.

Was it necessary? Absolutely not and, in my opinion, it could have set a dangerous precedent, if a minority within Congress was allowed to exhort policies that they were unable to pass legislatively. This is hardly what I would call a good example of democracy in action.

The sad thing about the demands of the Republican Party, heavily influenced by the Koch Brothers, and his Tea Party friends, is that they had the potential of bringing down are economy, not to mention, the number of causalities that did happen. They were not going to delay ObamaCare. They were not going to prevent the debt ceiling from rising to cover our expenses.  So why were the House Republicans willing to risk it all? Maybe because they were not the ones hurt by a government shutdown, it was the rest of us. They came from “safe” districts that were created by their gerrymandering of congressional districts, and would receive major political contributions for their effort from the Koch Brothers, Heritage Action fund and others.

I think we need to fix the problems, beginning with the budget and debt ceiling processes. Second, I think we need to lessen the impact of money on elections, gerrymandering, voter suppression efforts and the alike.

I also think we need to address the legitimate concerns of citizens with regard to the deficit. The Republicans talk a good game about the federal deficit, but they have been responsible for it with their big spending on military, subsidies to businesses, and wars financed by credit. It is interesting that the last President to have a federal surplus was a Democrat, Bill Clinton, and that the size of the deficit was shrinking under Obama, despite inheriting the worse economy since the great depression from Bush.  The best solution, in my opinion, is a balanced approach to the deficit, one third cutting expenditures (military and subsidies to big business), one third increasing revenues (increasing cap on social security contributions), and one third increasing taxes (increasing taxes on rich who benefited from the recession, those that avoid paying a minimum tax, and loop holes).

Finally, I think we need to address the real problems in society, beginning with raising the minimum wage (and addressing the growing gap between the rich and the rest of us), passing meaningful and comprehensive immigration reform, improving ObamaCare (that is making health care not only affordable, but available to all Americans), reducing gun violence and crime, investing in education and our infrastructure, promoting peace and democracy in the world, promoting tolerance and ending discrimination at home, and, in general, promoting the common good.

What do you think we can do to avoid another financial crisis created by the inaction of Congress?