As the partial federal government shutdown completes its third day, congressman Mike Simpson of Idaho is looking for a potential solution that would fund the government temporarily while Democrats and Republicans battle over the Affordable Health Care Act.
In a news release issued Wednesday, Simpson said he's open to a short-term continuing resolution that would fund the federal budget.
“Let me be clear, I am going to continue to support the position of our Republican Caucus in the ongoing shutdown dispute,” said Simpson. “Having said that, similar to Sen. Rand Paul, I could support a very short-term clean CR, perhaps one or two weeks, while we continue to negotiate on a longer-term bill that addresses priorities we believe are important.”
No new press releases have been issued by Idaho's two senators, Mike Crapo and Jim Risch, concerning the shutdown.
Both Crapo and Risch voted on Sept. 30 to continue funding the federal government if Obamacare was delayed for one year.
Last Friday, the U.S. Senate passed a Continuing Resolution to fund the government through Nov. 15.
Early Sunday morning, the House amended that CR with a one-year delay and a repeal of the Medical Device tax in Obamacare.
The majority leader in the Senate moved to strike the amendments passed by the House, and it was successful with a simple majority vote of 54-46.
The bill went back to the House where it failed.
“Every day we see more and more problems associated with Obamacare and its implementation and it is increasingly clear this law is wrong for America,” Risch said.
“Since passage, I have been committed to delaying, defunding and repealing this damaging law,” Crapo said.
The partial shutdown of the federal government is taking a toll on the offices and staff of Idaho’s four congressional leaders, including First Congressional District Rep. Raul Labrador.
All four members of the delegation said they were scaling back constituent services and staff in their offices across the state and in Washington, D.C.
Republican Sens. Mike Crapo and Jim Risch also say they intend to donate a portion of their $174,000 annual pay during the shutdown to charity.
House members and senators can’t withhold their own pay even if they want to. Under the Constitution’s 27th Amendment, lawmakers can only change the pay of those in a future Congress, not the one in which they serve.
Crapo is closing offices in five Idaho cities this week, while Risch is using limited staff to keep offices open.
Other agencies impacted by the shutdown include the Idaho Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children or WIC, but it has received contingency and reallocation funds from the U.S. Department of Agriculture so it can continue to honor vouchers and offer clinical services through the end of October.
In Idaho, WIC has about 43,000 participants, who each receive a monthly voucher for an average of $50.
If the federal shutdown lasts longer than a month, benefits and services for the Idaho WIC program could be temporarily disrupted. If this happens, DHW will provide information so program participants and partners can make plans for an interruption of benefits or services, according to the Idaho Department of Health and Welfare.
Maj. Gen. Gary Sayler, Idaho National Guard commander, said Wednesday that monthly training for members of the Idaho Army National Guard and Idaho Air National Guard have been postponed.
“Due to the uncertainty caused by the current government shutdown, we have no choice but to postpone this important monthly training,” Sayler said.
Idaho Army National Guard Unit training assemblies throughout the state have been postponed for this weekend, Oct. 5-6. It has been scheduled for Oct. 19-20, assuming the government shutdown has ended by then.
Idaho Air National Guard Unit training set for this weekend has also been cancelled. Once the government has been funded, Sayler said individual plans for making up the two-day period will be made.
You've had MONTHS to hash this out and we still went into shutdown. The ACA has been known to be coming for years and you let the shutdown happen because you can't resolve your issues. And you say you are going to stick to the Republican hard line regardless. No wonder nothing is solved. We don't want any more 'short term' solutions. Do the best for the PEOPLE and not the PARTY! Shame on all of you.
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You've had MONTHS to hash this out and we still went into shutdown. The ACA has been known to be coming for years and you let the shutdown happen because you can't resolve your issues. And you say you are going to stick to the Republican hard line regardless. No wonder nothing is solved. We don't want any more 'short term' solutions. Do the best for the PEOPLE and not the PARTY! Shame on all of you.
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The Idaho State Journal invites you to take part in the community conversation. But those who don't play nice may be uninvited. Don't post comments that are off topic, defamatory, libelous, obscene, racist, abusive, threatening or an invasion of privacy. We may remove any comment for any reason or no reason. We encourage you to report abuse, but the decision to delete is ours. Commenters have no expectation of privacy and may be held accountable for their comments. Comments are opinions of the author only, and do not reflect the opinions or views of Idaho State Journal.