Campaign to Fix the Debt Reacts to the Government Shutdown

WASHINGTON, Oct. 1, 2013 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The following is a statement from Maya MacGuineas, President of the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget and head of the Campaign to Fix the Debt:

"The Campaign to Fix the Debt believes it is truly shameful that the most powerful nation in the world couldn't reach a compromise to keep its government running. While the government may be shutting off its lights, the American people are at home trying to provide for their families, wondering why their nation's leaders are unable to work together.

"This avoidable outcome highlights a dysfunction that threatens to spill over to other areas – like raising the debt ceiling – where failure to reach agreement would not just be disruptive, but have disastrous economic consequences both at home and abroad. 

"The focus of some House Republicans on policies unrelated to the central funding of government, instead of on policies to improve the debt, has diverted conversations from bipartisan solutions to keep the government open. But both sides must take some responsibility for the broader mess we are in, and both sides must work together to fix it. We urge Members of Congress to immediately resolve this crisis so they can turn their attention to raising the debt ceiling and focus on the critical issues of entitlement reform, tax reform and the nation's unsustainable debt."

For more information about the Campaign to Fix the Debt, please visit www.fixthedebt.org.

SOURCE Campaign to Fix the Debt