Dems: GOP 'Playing With Fire' on Shutdown

As House Republicans unveiled their proposal Thursday to slash tens of billions of dollars in federal spending this fiscal year (which already is four months old), Senate Democrats are decrying budget brinksmanship and the threat of a government shutdown.

"It's playing with fire," Sen. Charles Schumer, D-N.Y., said yesterday, according to a Federal Times report.

Prior to last fall's elections, GOP leaders indicated their unwillingness to provoke a shutdown, given that their party bore the brunt of the blame for the last big shutdown in 1995-96. Since then, though, the signals have gotten more mixed. As Federal Times reported:

House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, said that a shutdown is not the goal. Last month, however, House Financial Services Committee Chairman Spencer Bachus, R-Ala., was quoted as saying that "we are going to have to be brave this time" if President Obama vetoes Republican spending legislation and tries "to force us to shut government down."