Congressman Alan Grayson (FL-09) appeared on national television tonight to offer his perspective on the government shutdown, the fight over the debt ceiling, and how easily it could all be over:
Grayson on tea party conservatives’ efforts to extract partisan favors in exchange for ending the shutdown:
“Look at what they’re doing right now: They’re basically saying, “If you let us steal your car (which is Obamacare), then we won’t burn down your house (which is the economy).” That’s extortion.”
Grayson on why the Speaker won’t bring a ‘clean’ CR up for a vote to end the shutdown:
“[Speaker Boehner] is being held captive, like all the rest of us, by the tea party loons – the people who feel that it’s best to shut down the government, best to default on our debt – the ones who actually look forward to that. That’s the problem we all face. But [Speaker Boehner] has to rise above it. He has failed to do that, and therefore, he must go.”
Grayson on tea party conservatives’ support for a default:
“A recent ABC/Washington Post poll found that 31 percent of Republicans, basically the Tea Party Republicans, thought that a government shutdown and a default on the debt would do tragic harm to the U.S. economy – and they wanted to do it anyway.”
Grayson on whether or not we’re headed for a default on our national debt:
“I think it’s quite possible, and I deeply regret it. The Republican Party has become the largest suicide pact in history. I’m just hoping they don’t drag us all down with them.”
Grayson on the need to end the shutdown and avert a default – and how to do it quickly:
“We are out of time, we shouldn’t even be involved in this fight, and need to just get beyond it by the earliest, quickest, most facilitating means possible. I’ve introduced a bill, H.R. 3213, the ‘Anti-Self Destruction Act’ to fund the government at current levels for 12 months, and raise the debt ceiling for 15 months. And that’s where we need to be right now.”
