President Obama is holding a press conference to discuss the government shut down and impending debt ceiling crisis. You can
watch it live here or on
CSPAN-2
11:04 AM PT: Yeah. He's late. You can also watch on regular C-SPAN and if either chamber comes back into session during the presser, on CSPAN-3.
11:15 AM PT: President Obama is up. Says he told Boehner he's happy to talk with him and Republicans about anything. But not under these kind of threats.
11:17 AM PT: "That's not how it works." We don't deal with foreign governments this way, this isn't how the government works. "Let's stop these threats . . . and get down to work." Says that he and his senior advisors have had more than 20 conversations with Republican leadership. Plenty of negotiation.
11:20 AM PT: Senate Democrats did what House Republicans demanded--they passed a budget. Republicans refused to do what they say they wanted, and refuse to go to conference. He's mentioned Boehner or "the Speaker" several times, putting responsibility squarely on Boehner.
11:20 AM PT: "Let's stop the excuses. Let's take a vote in the House. Let's end this shutdown right now."
11:23 AM PT: On default deniers: We'd be defaulting for the first time in 225 years. We have to pay for what we've already spent. "Markets plunged. Consumer confidence plunged." Economists have warned of the permanent damage this could bring. "It does not allow for a single of dime of increased spending. All it does is allow for the Treasury to pay for what the Congress has already spent."
11:25 AM PT: "This is the credit worthiness of the U.S. we're talking about..... This is real." Talks about how 401(K)s will crash, the markets will crash, we could be sent right back into a deep recession.
Obama: "The last time Tea Party Republicans flirted with default, the markets plunged."
— @politicoroger
11:26 AM PT: Points out that the Senate already compromised by passing a CR at the spending levels the Republicans demanded.
11:31 AM PT: AP Q: If congress does pass clean bills that are very short term, does your offer to negotiate more still stand?
O: Absolutely. I will talk with them about anything. "I am wiling to work through all those issues." Once again reiterates that he will negotiate just about anything once the ransom has been given up. "We're not going to pay ransom for America paying its bills. That should be non-negotiable.... Not something we should even come close to playing with."
11:36 AM PT: Q: If we default, would you prioritize and pay bond holders first, or SS and military pay?
O: Very hopeful Congress does not put us in that position. But paying bondholders is not good enough. We have to pay Social Security, military, businesses with government contracts. The credit worthiness of the nation is at stake. "No option is good in that scenario. . . . When I hear people try to downplay the consequences of that, it's really irresponsible." "Really funny when it comes from Republicans who claim to be champions of business."
11:37 AM PT:
"There is no business person out there who thinks this wouldn't be a big deal." -- Barack Obama #default
— @JuddLegum