Battling over a 2024 fiscal spending bill, the U.S. government is due to shut down Sunday, Oct. 1, largely because the White House, House and Senate Democrats have a take-it-or-leave it approach to the U.S. budget. Communication between House Republicans and the White House is non-existent, with 80-uyear-old President Joe Biden rejecting any attempts by House Republicans to de their jobs. House Democrats, led by House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.), 100% rubber stamp White House spending plans, despite an expected record $1.6 trillion deficit in fiscal 2023. Former President Barack Obama faced a $1.41 trillion deficit in 2009, 9.8% of total GDP of 14.48 trillion. Today’s GDP of 2023 28.84 trillion, makes the of fraction of GDP 5.7%, better than 2009 but still unacceptable. Republican House members, led by House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.), want fiscal restraint.
Biden and House and Senate Democrats want the U.S. Treasury to fund another $24 billion in Ukraine war spending, including another $300 million in additional aid. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.), together with 35 other GOP House members of the Freedom Caucus, wants to end Ukraine War spending. Former President Donald Trump urges the Freedom caucus to demand that Ukraine War funding stop. House Republicans, with the exception of the Freedom Caucus, support President Joe Biden’s Ukraine War spending. White House and House and Senate Democrats are willing to default the government, rather that negotiate with the GOP to deal with the $33 trillion national debt and 2023 $1.6 trillion federal budget deficit. Biden and House and Senate Democrats refuse to discuss Ukraine War spending, demanding the GOP accept current spending levels.
Ukraine’s 45-year-old President Volodymyr Zelensky was in New York and Washington last week for the U.N. General Assembly, appearing before the Security Council to highlight Russian war crimes. Zelensky asked to speak to a joint session of Congress but was denied by House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.), citing other priorities. But that didn’t stop Zelensky from making the rounds in Congress with Democrats and Republicans sympathetic to the Ukraine War. Rep. Andy Biggs (R-Ariz.), a member of the Freedom Caucus, tried to strip the $300 million from the Pentagon budget, was voted down [330-104], showing that, despite the minority opposition to Ukraine War funding. Biden still has enough votes to continue the war as long as he’s president. Trump said that, if elected, in 2024 he would end the Ukraine War in 24-hours or sooner.
Republicans, led by Greene, face an uphill battle trying to remove $300 million from the Pentagon budget, with strong bipartisan support of House and Senate Democrats in favor of Biden’s proxy war against the Kremlin. Whatever amount Ukraine War spending in the new fiscal 2024 budget, it’s a tiny fraction of $6.9 trillion spending plan. When it comes to Ukraine War spending, the Freedom Caucus would prefer to see the $24.3 billion spent on the U.S. border or making other cuts to reduce the 2023 $1.6 trillion federal budget deficit. Democrats and Republicans have shown disgraceful negligence in meeting together to resolve relevant budget issues to keep the government running, avoiding the disruptions and costs associated with shutting down the government. Trump urged House and Senate Republicans to let the government shut down like he did in 2018.
Given the relatively small amount of the 2024 $832 2 billion Pentagon budget, lawmakers have been reluctant to rock the boat on Ukraine war spending. Only the 36-member Freedom Caucus objects to spending on the Ukraine War. GOP’s Freedom Caucus objects to U.S. taxpayers funding the bankrupt Ukraine government and paying for the Ukraine government and the war. Biden and House and Senate Democrats don’t see the how the Ukraine War has wrecked decades of diplomacy, détente and arms control with the Russian Federation. Biden, House and Senate Democrats argue that the Ukraine War protects European democracy. Yet NATO was commissioned April 4. 1949 with the job of protecting European democracy. Ukraine applied but was rejected by NATO for membership for many reasons, including fiscal insolvency and ongoing war with the Kremlin.
White House, House and Senate Democrats have refused to discuss anything in the 2024 budget, saying take-it-or-leave-it to House and Senate Republicans. So when the government shuts down Oct. 1, Democrats have no one to blame but themselves for refusing to discuss-and-negotiate with Republicans. Democrat-friendly media has already pointed fingers at what they call right-wing Republicans. But the White House and House and Senate Republicans refuse to perform their Constitutional duties of compromising with the opposing party. Whatever happens with the Ukraine War, whether it leads to WW III or nuclear war or continues to cost the Treasury untold billions, is all on the White House and House and Senate Democrats. Shutting down the government is the only way left for Republicans to force Democrats to discuss-and-negotiate a responsible budget.
About the Author
John M. Curtis writes politically neutral commentary analyzing spin in national and global news. He’s editor of OnlineColumnist.com and author of Dodging The Bullet and Operation Charisma.
