What a Government Shutdown Means to Military Families, DoD Civilians

With the new fiscal year upon us, and Congress still bickering about Obamacare as a condition of passing a stop-gap measure, military members, their families, veterans, and DoD civilian employees are facing the stark reality of having to perform their duties with no idea when they will see a paycheck.

To be clear, military members and veterans will eventually be paid their contracted salaries and benefits, but the key word is

eventually. Civilian defense department personnel may not even be that lucky.

Rep. Eric Swalwell: If Federal Workers Don't Get Paid, Neither Will I

As the United States government is just hours away from its first shutdown in 17 years, Senate Democrats and House Republicans continue to go back and forth on who is to blame instead of sitting down and having a real discussion on practical solutions. If a budget deal is not met by 12:01 Tuesday morning, departments classified as "non-essential" will close until Congress agrees on a budget for the 2014 fiscal year.

Congress on Strike!

The first few Congresses just didn’t have that much to do. They had to approve a handful of presidential appointments, they had to decide whether or not we were going to go to war with France or England. And, since they were the only branch of government authorized to spend money, they had to pay the bills and keep the lights on. Then they could go back to their farms, factories and country law practices and do their real jobs.

Assemblyman Tim Donnelly Crosses Party Lines to Support Drug Reform

SB 649, a bill introduced by California State Senator Mark Leno (D-San Francisco), allows judges and prosecutors the discretion to shift drug possession between a felony and a misdemeanor depending on context. It recently passed the Assembly largely along party lines, with ten Democrats and two Republicans voting across the aisle.

The Shutdown Speech that Obama Should Give

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Dear President Obama, I wrote this for you to give next week. I didn't have your personal e-mail, so I am just going to post it to IVN and hope that you find it. You're welcome.

Your friend and sometimes supporter,

Mike

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My fellow Americans,