CNN:
Republican says government shutdown possible, as House GOP work to bridge divisions
A top Republican on the House Appropriations Committee says that the fight to cut spending could lead to a government shut down.
"I know that that's not something leadership wants to do. Is it a possibility? Yes, it is a possibility, but we're going to do everything we can to make sure that doesn't happen," Rep. Mike Simpson, R-Idaho, told reporters off the House floor Thursday.
Simpson, who chairs a House Appropriations subcommittee, is the highest ranking Republican to go that far in suggesting a government shut down could happen.
Conservatives are forcing House GOP leaders to cut more spending this year than they had planned in order to live up to the Republican pledge to cut $100 billion in spending before the end of the year.
A government shutdown would be a disaster, not just just for the Republican Party but for the nation as well. These guys are playing with fire -- shutting down Social Security, shutting down Medicare, these aren't acceptable scenarios for the country, but that's exactly where these guys are heading.
Everybody knows that if House Republicans hand teahadists the keys to the castle, they will end up producing a spending bill that is DOA, forcing a shutdown. That's the game the teahadists want to play. So now is a real leadership moment for the House GOP. They know any the only kind of budget that teahadists will support is the kind of budget that will force a government shutdown.
To avoid that, they'll need to ditch the teahadists and work with House Democrats to pass a bipartisan budget that can pass the Senate and get President Obama's signature. Obviously, the chances of that happening are roughly zero. And that means in all likelihood House Republicans have settled on a path of government shutdown. And they know it.