International Economic News: US government slides into shutdown after deadline The United States lurched into a dreaded government shutdown early yesterday for the first time in 17 years, triggering agency closures and hundreds of thousands of furloughs as Congress missed a deadline to pass a budget. Ten minutes before midnight bells rang throughout a deeply divided Washington and after a day of furious brinkmanship between President Barack Obama’s Democrats and rival Republicans, the White House ordered federal agencies to initiate their shutdown procedures. Lawmakers had hardly haggled over budgetary matters in the final frantic hours before the deadline – the end of the fiscal year. Instead, they argued over whether to link the budget pact with efforts to delay Obama’s healthcare law. In Cambodia, Sean J McIntosh, spokesman for the American embassy, said: “The US Embassy remains open for business and will continue to function for a limited period of time in the absence of any new appropriations bill or continuing resolution. Around 800,000 government workers are expected to be sent home, government services are to be slashed and monuments such as the Statue of Liberty and national parks will close. The crisis is rooted in an attempt by tea party Republicans in the House to make passage of a new government budget conditional on thwarting Obama’s signature health reform law. Stocks on Monday retreated as traders braced for the shutdown. Markets are likely to be even more traumatised if there is no quick solution to the next fast approaching crisis. (Source: The Phnom Penh Post)
Posted on: Wed, 02 Oct 2013 05:49:50 +0000
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