The following opinion column is part of a student discussion on the recent government shutdown.
On Oct. 1, Congress failed to pass a spending plan for the 2013 fiscal year. As a result the federal government shut down, and millions of federal employees were furloughed as a result. All those deemed nonessential employees were dismissed without pay or benefits. In the meantime, the political leaders who failed to pass this funding plan still receive payment and benefits because of the 27th Amendment.
This reminds me, as Machiavelli wrote, “People cannot make themselves secure except by being powerful.” In a republic, the power rests with the electorate – the national good placed above the good of the representatives. Sadly this appears to be the case in theory alone. In truth, every decision made in Congress for the past week has been made seeking to secure power.
Since the shutdown, House Republicans have attempted to fund the government through a series of continuing resolutions aimed at funding the government one piece at a time. At every turn, Democrats in the House and Senate have opposed and killed the measures. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid argued that Speaker John Boehner promised a “clean” continuing resolution before the August recess, provided that spending would not exceed $998 billion, As such, Reid will not consider any compromise until the House passes a single funding plan free of any provisions to defund Obamacare.
Reid said if he compromises, people will believe he and his party will break down any time the Republicans try to renegotiate the terms of an agreement. This unwillingness to compromise has upset the balance of power between the two houses of Congress. It is the responsibility of the House to pass any spending measure, and it is up to the Senate to revise the measure. The House is not meant to be beholden to Senate leadership.
That being said, Republicans are not without blame. Many Republicans now in the House were elected on platforms that involved repealing Obamacare. As such, failing to do so would be failing their campaign promises. This could lead their constituency to replace them.
So they decided to take a gamble to unnecessarily defund it. Before the shutdown the Republicans were on a political high. After several scandals within the administration and tensions of war in Syria, they were in a position to potentially seize control of the Senate in 2014 and the White House in 2016. Now their greed and gamble emulate petulant children. What’s more, their gamble for absolute victory puts American stability and economic prosperity in jeopardy.
There are many among you who claim what is going on in Congress is a reflection of fighting among the people, or you want to blame it on the other guy. The simple truth is we have bound ourselves to bureaucracy through hegemony, and it horrifies us when it’s seen in full duplicate splendor.
If our nation is to be secured and our future preserved, we must cast down dogmatic bureaucracy and pursue government reform to limit federal power. If we don’t, we will remain pawns to those who recognize the truth of my words and who allow their own Machiavellian ambitions to be their salvation.
Kyle Jones is a sophomore majoring in political science and Spanish. His column runs biweekly on Tuesdays.
