US government in budget deadlock
Obama and Republican House Speaker fail to agree details on how £33bn cuts to government spending can be made The US federal government faces a shutdown from Saturday after the White House and the Republican-led House failed to reach an agreement on Tuesday on budget spending cuts. Barack Obama met the House Speaker, John Boehner, at the White House but the two were unable to bridge differences. Obama, speaking afterwards at a press conference, said the two were closer than ever before over the amount of cuts, but he blamed politics and ideology for the continued differences. If there is no deal by Friday, the shutdown in federal services will start the following day. The armed forces and emergency services will not be affected, but there will be disruption to such things as payments to military veterans, passport applications, visits to national parks and monuments and loans to small businesses, Obama said. The Democrats and Republicans are locked in a battle over last year’s budget. Obama told the press conference that he had agreed to the $33bn (£20bn) in cuts originally sought by Boehner, but that the speaker was quibbling about the details. The main disagreement is not over the figure but where the cuts should be made: the Republicans want reductions that would hit both Obama’s healthcare plans and the environmental protection agency. Obama and Boehner both held press conferences, intent on trying to avoid the blame for a shutdown. “The American people do not like these games,” Obama said, calling on his Republican opponents to behave like grown-ups and reach a compromise. Boehner said there was no agreement because the $33bn cuts proposed by the White House were smoke and mirrors. “There was no agreement reached so those conversations will continue,” Boehner said. Boehner is under pressure from a new Republican intake in the House who owe their victories to the Tea Party movement which campaigned for deep cuts in federal spending. Obama offered to hold further meetings on Wednesday and Thursday with Boehner. It has been 15 years since the last US shutdown, during the Clinton administration. In a separate development, the Republicans introduced their spending plan for the future, one that would cut the federal deficit by $5.8tn over the next decade, compared with the $1tn Obama is proposing. The Republican budget has no chance of being implemented, with Obama in the White House and the Democrats in charge of the Senate. The Republican cuts would come from healthcare and tax reforms. US politics Barack Obama Republicans Democrats Tea Party movement United States US economy Economics Ewen MacAskill guardian.co.uk
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US government in budget deadlock
Obama and Republican House Speaker fail to agree details on how £33bn cuts to government spending can be made The US federal government faces a shutdown from Saturday after the White House and the Republican-led House failed to reach an agreement on Tuesday on budget spending cuts. Barack Obama met the House Speaker, John Boehner, at the White House but the two were unable to bridge differences. Obama, speaking afterwards at a press conference, said the two were closer than ever before over the amount of cuts, but he blamed politics and ideology for the continued differences. If there is no deal by Friday, the shutdown in federal services will start the following day. The armed forces and emergency services will not be affected, but there will be disruption to such things as payments to military veterans, passport applications, visits to national parks and monuments and loans to small businesses, Obama said. The Democrats and Republicans are locked in a battle over last year’s budget. Obama told the press conference that he had agreed to the $33bn (£20bn) in cuts originally sought by Boehner, but that the speaker was quibbling about the details. The main disagreement is not over the figure but where the cuts should be made: the Republicans want reductions that would hit both Obama’s healthcare plans and the environmental protection agency. Obama and Boehner both held press conferences, intent on trying to avoid the blame for a shutdown. “The American people do not like these games,” Obama said, calling on his Republican opponents to behave like grown-ups and reach a compromise. Boehner said there was no agreement because the $33bn cuts proposed by the White House were smoke and mirrors. “There was no agreement reached so those conversations will continue,” Boehner said. Boehner is under pressure from a new Republican intake in the House who owe their victories to the Tea Party movement which campaigned for deep cuts in federal spending. Obama offered to hold further meetings on Wednesday and Thursday with Boehner. It has been 15 years since the last US shutdown, during the Clinton administration. In a separate development, the Republicans introduced their spending plan for the future, one that would cut the federal deficit by $5.8tn over the next decade, compared with the $1tn Obama is proposing. The Republican budget has no chance of being implemented, with Obama in the White House and the Democrats in charge of the Senate. The Republican cuts would come from healthcare and tax reforms. US politics Barack Obama Republicans Democrats Tea Party movement United States US economy Economics Ewen MacAskill guardian.co.uk
Posted by
on April 5, 2011. Filed under News, Politics, World News.
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