By Staff Writer: Eliza Bengala
As the government shutdown rolls into its third week, the Democrat controlled Senate and the Republican controlled House of Representatives have still not reached an agreement over the Affordable Care Act (also known as Obamacare).
It’s been the same song and dance in Congress for the past two weeks. The House passes a bill that defunds the ACA, but the Senate rejects the bill. Then, the House passes a bill that delays the ACA, but the Senate also rejected that bill. After that, the House passed a bill that only delays some parts of the ACA, but the Senate, along with the other bills, rejected that bill as well.
Why can’t Congress agree on the ACA and pass a budget? Well, that can be explained in a few simple words.
“We will not negotiate,” says United States President Barack Obama in reference to the GOP passing bills that will defund the ACA.
And, while Congress argues over a budget, another issue has arisen. The debt ceiling.
While the debt ceiling isn’t related to the government shutdown itself, it’s still a fairly large issue. On October 17, the federal government won’t be able to borrow any more money to pay its bills, due to the fact that it will be capping its $16.7 trillion. The House and the Senate have tried to pass bills over the weekend regarding the issue, including ideas that would let the government keep borrowing for another six weeks, but no agreement has been reached.
But, as the shutdown continues, more and more people are feeling the impact.
On the seventh day of the shutdown, the Dow Jones dropped below 15,000 points, indicating the anxieties of people over the economy. Businesses are also hurting because of people’s fear of the economy, and federal employees not getting paid.
Veterans are also hurting. They will no longer receive federal tuition assistance that was promised to them until the government is able to open back up. National war monuments have been closed, causing some veterans and their families to tear down barricades in order to make statements about their disappointment in the government that they risked their lives to protect.
Will the government eventually come out of the shutdown? Of course. But the impact from the blow will last Americans for years.
