We are a country of laws. That is supposed to be our strength, the backbone of our democracy.
Sometimes we pass a bad law. But even then, we have a system that allows us to go back and change those laws. We have checks and balances that eventually work.
We muddle through.
Three years ago, we passed a law called the Affordable Care Act. It passed Congress (the Legislative Branch, both the House and the Senate), it was signed into law by the President (the Executive Branch). Some who were very upset that it passed asked the Supreme Court to examine whether it met constitutional muster. It did; it gained the approval of the Judicial Branch. And so it is the law of the land. It passed all branches of Government.
But some were still very upset that it passed. There was an election, and many made their opposition to this law a central part of their campaign. And enough were elected to form a majority in the House of Representatives.
Now, the legal way to change a law is to amend or revoke that law, by garnering enough votes in the House and Senate; if necessary, enough to overcome a veto by the Executive Branch. In 3 years, and despite one election, those who oppose this law have been unable to do this.
And so the Affordable Care Act is still the law of the land. By popular vote, by majority acclaim. Those who still oppose it are welcome to continue to campaign and lobby and advertise to try to change that law. But that is not what they chose to do.
Instead of going through legal procedures, they have chosen to refuse to do their jobs. They have refused to pass a budget that does not defund or delay Obamacare. Note that defunding or delaying implementation of something that passed into law three years ago is NOT one of the legal ways to change a law. And so the government is shut down.
Some people are cursing both parties, saying they are refusing to negotiate. But ONCE A LAW HAS PASSED, YOU DO NOT NEGOTIATE IT. Negotiation is what you do while forming the law.
Imagine you are driving down the highway. The speed limit is 60 but you can easily go 80. You do, and are stopped for speeding. Do you say to the cop. "That law is wrong; the speed limit here should be 80. If you don't agree with me or at least negotiate with me on this I will shut down the police department".
Well, if you were a dictator you might. But in a society based on the rule of law, you don't. You don't wait for the cop to say "OK, let's set the speed limit at 75". In fact, if the cop DID negotiate, he would be abrogating his responsibility to enforce the law. No. It would be wrong to negotiate in that manner. The law is the law; if you want to amend it, do it though proper channels.
The Senate is entirely correct in refusing to negotiate what is already passed into law. The Republicans in the House are trying to subvert the legal legislative process, to use extortion to get what they have been unable to get by legitimate means.
Pass the budget. If "Obamacare" is as terrible as the Republicans believe (despite the fact that most of it was originally proposed by Republicans), then they will have no problem repealing it. Legally.
PS - I understand that there are enough votes in the House to pass a clean (without amendments) budget, but Speaker Boehner will not let that bill come to the floor. If administrative rules allow one person to essentially close down the government, there should be a mechanism to throw out those rules. And if this is true, we should see if it is possible to impeach Boehner, for dereliction of duty and for subversion of the legislative process.
