Obama: I'll Shut Down the Government and Suspend Military Pay
@whiteheather39 (24403)
United States
April 8, 2011 8:45am CST
I was totally shocked to read that NOT PAYING OUR MILITARY if there is a government shutdown is a personal choice made by Obama. How on earth can he threatened this to the very people who are in the middle of war and just in the past few weeks being involved in a new military problem in Libya.
SHAME SHAME SHAME ON YOU OBAMA.
Rather than accept a few billion in budget cuts (read rounding error), President Obama has signaled his willingness to shut down the federal government. (Yah!) For those keeping score at home, any government shutdown that happens is on Obama’s plate. He is the President. All on him.
The worst part of this whole debate is the Obama Administration’s decision to hold military pay hostage to the budget debate.[u][b] For the last few decades, government shutdowns have been guided by an OMB directive issued during the Reagan Administration. Under this directive, military personnel would continue to receive the paychecks while politicians argued about the budget. The Clinton Administration, during the last government shutdown, kept the paychecks flowing.
But, not Obama.
The Obama Administration has overturned the old OMB directive and has decided to suspend military paychecks if there is a government shutdown. No reason to do it…but they have decided to. Reprehensible.[/b][/u]
Have you any opinion as to why Obama would choose to do this??
6 people like this
9 responses
@bobmnu (8157)
• United States
10 Apr 11
I was appalled when I read this. What made matters worse was the statement that federal employees who were furloughed would receive full back pay for the days of missed work. The military, who are working 24/7/365, will have to wait for their pay just like the others with one exception...the military people are putting their life on the line for us, at the command of the President. To him they are good enough to die for him but not good enough to pay on time.
This should be a message to all current military members and to all veterans as to what this President thinks of them.
2 people like this
@whiteheather39 (24403)
• United States
10 Apr 11
I can on repeat what I previously commented and that is:
I pray that our military personnel, their families and extended families remember this when Obama comes up for re-election in 2012.!!!
1 person likes this
@laglen (19759)
• United States
8 Apr 11
Because our military is too powerful and they are not mesmerized by Obama's greatness.
Lets narrowing down the facts, he is looking to stop paying military so that we can continue to fund abortion. Amazing! AND then, they blame Republicans because they are doing the peoples business.
I wish Obama would just pick up his toys and go home.
One good thing that MIGHT come out of this - The AMerican people standing behind our troops. I for one, will give every penny I possibly can to help military families. We already are here. There are a lot of families of soldiers getting deployed, missing checks. We are helping with their mortgages, food, utilities. I do not mind one little but doing this, and I will continue to do so. But it is disgusting that we should have to. Obama is really stepping in it this time.
1 person likes this
@matersfish (6306)
• United States
8 Apr 11
What I haven't been able to stop laughing at for the past two months is the fact that public funding for abortion supposedly doesn't even exist until people want to take it away. 
Then it's all about how these poor victims will be forced to lie down in back seats of Buicks across the nation and have their unwanted babies ripped out with jumper cables. 
Then it's all about how these poor victims will be forced to lie down in back seats of Buicks across the nation and have their unwanted babies ripped out with jumper cables. 2 people like this
@yyudah1 (26)
• United States
8 Apr 11
I think this is just an eye opening situation.I think for all the people that thought Obama was going to save them when he got into office.Well now we all got to realize that we cant depend on the government or the president,but there is actually a higher power but if your eyes are closed you will never know
2 people like this
@Taskr36 (13963)
• United States
8 Apr 11
First off, I support his willingness to shut the government down if they pull another 2 week budget. That crap has to stop. It's been going on for far too many months.
On the military, I don't think that's his call. I think it's already set who does and does not get paid during a government shut down. The military, sadly, is on the "not paid" side. Like all federal employees, they will get paid retroactively when a budget is passed so it's not like they're working for free. They're pay is simply delayed.
On that note Rand Paul has already proposed legislation to prevent the military from missing a paycheck or seeing it delayed.
http://www.randpaul2010.com/2011/04/sen-paul-proposes-government-shutdown-prevention-act-of-2011/
1 person likes this
@Taskr36 (13963)
• United States
8 Apr 11
I haven't been able to determine yet if Obama himself set it up so the military wouldn't get paid during a shutdown. Your source is a blog, and they referred to a document on the whitehouse's website that doesn't even mention the military. I'll have to do further research to see what the real deal is.
@matersfish (6306)
• United States
9 Apr 11
I also agree these extensions are a bunch of crap. But on principle alone I feel as if a shutdown is just the easy way out for both parties.
As far as Democrats go, they were scared to lose even more seats by touching this issue previously. They deserve to wait in bread lines over the nonsense.
As far as Republicans go, a lot of them are trying to play the stars now and throw in crap like defunding of Obamacare immediately instead of allowing it to go through process, something they know Democrats/Obama won't sign off on. Posturing.
So on principle alone they need to reach an agreement already and not shut down the government. Both sides get to relax and spin with a shutdown, trying to blame the other guy. And in the spin department, the Obamabots have a megaphone 10x louder.
We deserve better. Keep the government running until pressure forces cuts. I don't know if it'll happen. But a shutdown is, at least to me, letting them off the hook.
@CatsandDogs (13963)
• United States
12 Apr 11
Because the poor ole jackass can't get his way! Boo hoo!! Poor baby! Damn him anyways! He has NO conscience at all! To send our men and women over to fight and so many of them have been injured or killed and this is the thanks that they receive? Thanks BUT NO thanks! What a scum bag!! Low life scum bag!! He'll reap what he sows one day. Trust me, he'll reap what he sows.
1 person likes this
@Rollo1 (16679)
• Boston, Massachusetts
8 Apr 11
Honestly, I just don't know. I keep wavering between theories, the most popular of them being: 1. Obama is just stupid; and 2. Obama is trying to destroy America. Sometimes I think that both are true but there's a third theory that gets thrown in so it becomes: 3. Obama is stupid and is simply following orders from people who put him where he is to destroy America.
As for shutting down the government, 57% of the public say "bring it on". The Dems need to make it much more painful in order for them to have something to blame the GOP for. The military is important to most people, they understand the importance of paying our troops and feeding our troops, etc. so they will be outraged if this happens. Unfortunately for the Dems, I don't think the blame will fall on the other side but directly on them and Obama.
1 person likes this
@whiteheather39 (24403)
• United States
8 Apr 11
My honest opinion is your example #3. I think Obama is just a pawn being used to bring down our country. I really get the feeling that he and Mrs O enjoy their elitist lifestyle so much that they do not care what is happening to our country under Obama's presidency.
1 person likes this
@debrakcarey (19887)
• United States
8 Apr 11
Hopefully the majority of the American people are seeing through this. We ARE pawns in the big picture as far as most politicians are concerned. And I agree with # 3 as well. Stupidity has nothing to do with this well thought out plan. And it takes BIG money to accomplish the take down of a Republic such as we had.
When I read the Cloward Pivens plan...published back in the sixties in the socialist mag 'The Nation' I was convinced of it being entirely planned. We've been bought and paid for.
http://www.americanthinker.com/2009/02/the_clowardpiven_strategy_of_e.html
1 person likes this
@laglen (19759)
• United States
8 Apr 11
Democrats said the deadlock was all about a GOP demand to deny federal dollars for Planned Parenthood, which uses the taxpayer money to offer contraception and health care for women. Planned Parenthood is the nation's largest provider of abortion assistance
http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/U/US_SPENDING_SHOWDOWN?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2011-04-08-07-37-36
That aside reread the bold in the original post, this explains Obama's hand in it.
http://biggovernment.com/mikeflynn/2011/04/07/obama-ill-shut-down-the-government-and-suspend-military-pay/
2 people like this
@whiteheather39 (24403)
• United States
8 Apr 11
I am so sorry but I posted this and forgot to post the link to the article. Here it is:
http://biggovernment.com/mikeflynn/2011/04/07/obama-ill-shut-down-the-government-and-suspend-military-pay/
2 people like this
@whiteheather39 (24403)
• United States
8 Apr 11
Thank you laglen I see you found the correct link.2 people like this
@millertime (1394)
• United States
10 Apr 11
It just goes to show that Obama will stoop as low as to use our fine soldiers as pawns in his game of politics. There is no good reason to suspend military pay other than for political reasons. He used them as leverage to force the republicans to give ground, pure and simple. He should be ashamed of himself. It was a despicable act. Then again, it doesn't really surprise me that he would use such a disgusting tactic. The ends justify the means and at any cost it would seem. You can bet that he and all of the members of congress would have gotten their paychecks on time though. 
@whiteheather39 (24403)
• United States
10 Apr 11
I pray that our military personnel, their families and extended families remember this when Obama comes up for re-election in 2012.!!!
1 person likes this
@lacieice (2060)
• United States
9 Apr 11
Just a side note: It is already law that no federal funds can be allocated to fund abortions. What the disagrement is about is that the GOP wants to stop any funding for any service to any place that performs abortions, not for the abortions themselves.
@whiteheather39 (24403)
• United States
10 Apr 11
I think is an absolute fact that some(??) abortions are or have been paid for .....
One provision in the final deal would ban the use of federal or local government funds to pay for abortions in the District of Columbia.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/a...
1 person likes this
@Taskr36 (13963)
• United States
9 Apr 11
People keep saying that and yet every now and then we discover federal tax dollars paying for abortion. The second someone tries to cut that money off the pro-abortion crowd goes nuts. Just look at D.C. Delegate Eleanor Holmes Norton. She said that cutting off federal abortion funding to DC is "the functional equivalent of bombing innocent civilians,"
http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2011/04/07/dc-delegate-tells-congress-straight-hell-budget-battle/
1 person likes this
