The media are eager to nitpick over every word former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin or Minnesota Republican Rep. Michele Bachmann say, but will they hold Democratic Sen. Chuck Schumer of New York to the same standard?
On Sunday’s “State of the Union with Candy Crowley,” Schumer warned of the consequences of the federal government declining to raise the debt ceiling, referencing the government shutdown in 1995. (h/t the Blaze)
“Well, there’s even a problem before the debt ceiling,” Schumer said. “On March 4, the government funding resolution expires. And it seems that a lot of Republicans in the House want to risk a shutdown of the government if they don’t absolutely get their way. That was a mistake when Newt Gingrich tried it in 1995. It will be a bigger mistake now. It’s really playing with fire because, if they were to shut down the government, not only would horrible things happen like an inability of people to get Social Security checks, you can’t fund the military, but ultimately, it risks the credit markets.”
As the moment nears for the federal government to act, he urged the “three branches of government” to come together to find a solution. However, the branches he spoke of aren’t quite those in the Constitution: the executive, legislative and judiciary.
“They are getting wary because of the large debt we have, which we have to get down, but if they feel that people are willing to shut down the government, you could risk the credit markets really losing some confidence in the United States Treasury, and that could create a deeper recession than we had over the last several years — God forbid, even a depression. So I would urge my Republican colleagues, no matter how strongly they feel — you know, we have three branches of government. We have a House. We have a Senate. We have a president. And all three of us are going to have to come together and give some, but it is playing with fire to risk the shutting down of the government, just as it is playing with fire to risk not paying the debt ceiling.”
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