The Light Bulb Switches On For Congress To Pass The Budget
Photo Credit: Www.nytexaminer.com
Lili Kiefer, Writer
February 4, 2013
Filed under Politics, Student Life & News
Since last year we have seen Democrats and Republicans fight like cats and dogs about what should and should not be in the budget for 2013. You would think with all the bickering between congressional members lately that maybe some members were having their time of the month! But frankly the only member that can probably use this excuse and get away with it is Hillary Clinton.
However, this game of dodgeball going on between House and Senate members may be finally coming to a close, at least for the time being. The Senate is planning to pass a budget for 2013. The obvious question to ask here is why has it been so hard for the Senate to come up with any sort of budget over the past several years?
I mean, we know it’s got to be more than cultural differences that are hindering members from getting along with each other. Then what exactly is the problem?
According to Marco Rubio, a Junior Senator from Florida, “The Senate is controlled by Democrats, not by Republicans, and by law we are supposed to have a budget.”
Rubio continues by claiming, “its because when you have a budget, you have to make choices, and therefore you have to upset people and say well while this program is great, we can not afford it. As a result, we can not include it in budget for this year.” However, Rubio remarks “that this is hard for most legislative members in both the Senate as well as in the House, because members want their own political parties within those institutions to hold the majority.”
Nonetheless, Rubio assures the American people “that the Senate is coming up with a budget this year and it should be ready by mid-April.” Of course, I know there are readers out there who are probably scratching their heads this very minute and asking themselves what will happen, though, if the Senate actually does not come up with a budget. Well, that’s a very smart question and a reasonable one to ask, since Congress’s track record of likely passing a budget for this year is as likely as me winning the lottery, driving a Maserati, and owning that beach house on Malibu that I always wanted.
Hey, can’t a girl dream every once in a while? But let’s say the worst thing happened and both the House and Senate didn’t pass a budget. What then? Would the sky fall? Would a meteorite all of sudden coming crashing down on the Earth? Would the Earth undergo another Ice Age? Would Britney Spears shave her head again? I think we can all agree here that we hope that never happens again.
In all seriousness, though, none of those things would actually happen, except for possibly Britney Spears shaving her head again. No one can ever know what Britney Spears will do next. But nonetheless I digress. What would happen is sequestration would take into effect.
What does sequestration mean? In plain English, it means that mandatory spending cuts would be made, if the government does not manage to get a budget for this year. Such spending cuts could include things like taking money from our national defense and other programs.
This would not be good. This could possibly be worse than the sky falling, a meteorite hitting the planet, aliens in UFOs attacking planet Earth, another Ice Age. And yes, I must admit, believe it or not, Congress not passing a budget for 2013 would be worse than the sight of Britney Spears’ bald head.
But alas, the world is still spinning, there are still 24 hours in a day, and teeny boppers still have that contagious Bieber fever! As of right now the Senate will come up with a plan and the House will also come up with a plan, and then negotiations will start. Let’s hope that both Republicans and Democrats can finally sit down together, maybe even have a beer, share some friendly banter, and come up with a budget that can place this country’s economy on the right track.
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