A Government Shutdown Is Still Possible, Chuck Schumer Warns
WASHINGTON -- President Barack Obama on Monday signed a budget deal that sets government spending levels and raises the debt ceiling until well after he leaves office.
In theory, his signature should bring to an end to the high-drama standoffs that have characterized the Obama years since Republicans took control of the House in 2010. But on Capitol Hill, there was already talk about the possibility of a government shutdown in mid-December.
That’s because, while the deal Obama signed establishes spending levels, it does not preclude Republicans from attaching controversial policy riders when it comes time to actually fill out the specifics of what will be funded.
“There may be a shutdown. The hard right, it depends on their interaction with [House Speaker Paul] Ryan, they may demand a shutdown,” Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) told The Huffington Post in an interview on Friday. “It won’t be over the numbers. We won that fight. We won it big. It would be over the riders.”
In the scenario Schumer envisions, House and/or Senate Republicans could refuse to pass an omnibus spending bill that included funding for Planned Parenthood, or they might insist on repealing parts or all of the Dodd-Frank financial reform legislation passed in 2010. Democrats would balk at either maneuver. Newly elected House Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) wouldn't want to overrun the conservatives in his conference in his first major showdown and, presto, the current spending agreement expires and the government shuts down.
Ryan, for his part, refused to rule out an attempt to defund Planned Parenthood during an appearance on CNN's "State of the Union" Sunday, suggesting that he was willing to let the amendment process play out.
READ MORE: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/chuck-...
In theory, his signature should bring to an end to the high-drama standoffs that have characterized the Obama years since Republicans took control of the House in 2010. But on Capitol Hill, there was already talk about the possibility of a government shutdown in mid-December.
That’s because, while the deal Obama signed establishes spending levels, it does not preclude Republicans from attaching controversial policy riders when it comes time to actually fill out the specifics of what will be funded.
“There may be a shutdown. The hard right, it depends on their interaction with [House Speaker Paul] Ryan, they may demand a shutdown,” Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) told The Huffington Post in an interview on Friday. “It won’t be over the numbers. We won that fight. We won it big. It would be over the riders.”
In the scenario Schumer envisions, House and/or Senate Republicans could refuse to pass an omnibus spending bill that included funding for Planned Parenthood, or they might insist on repealing parts or all of the Dodd-Frank financial reform legislation passed in 2010. Democrats would balk at either maneuver. Newly elected House Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) wouldn't want to overrun the conservatives in his conference in his first major showdown and, presto, the current spending agreement expires and the government shuts down.
Ryan, for his part, refused to rule out an attempt to defund Planned Parenthood during an appearance on CNN's "State of the Union" Sunday, suggesting that he was willing to let the amendment process play out.
READ MORE: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/chuck-...
