The Republican-controlled House and the Democrat-led Senate failed to come to a decision Monday night concerning how the government would be funded for the upcoming fiscal year. As a result, the government will shut down for the first time in almost 20 years.
Non-essential federal agencies will begin to close, and 800,000 federal workers will no longer be receiving regular paychecks, although it is not yet known how long the shutdown will last or if Republicans and Democrats can reach a resolution, USA Today reports.
House Speaker John Boehner had stated earlier that Republicans would not back down from their fight against President Barack Obama’s health care law. “It's about fairness for the American people,” he said. Obama himself said he would not compromise on the Affordable Care Act, or Obamacare, either. He stated Monday night, “One faction of one party in one house of Congress in one branch of government doesn't get to shut down the entire government just to re-fight the results of the last election.”
Despite the government shutdown, and the House and Senate disagreement about the health care law which led to their failure to come to a resolution last night, Obamacare is a go. The online marketplace for healthcare coverage went live at 7:00 AM CDT, according to The Chicago Tribune.
If the shutdown follows a similar pattern to the two between 1995 and 1996, which lasted a combined 27 days, it will cost the government about $2 billion, CBS reports.
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