Tag Archives: Government Shutdown

Veterans Storm Two More Memorials; Police Chase Them Out Of One

More Veterans refused to let the White House’s Office of Management and Budget stop them from honoring their comrades at war memorials.

Veterans moved barricades to approach both the Vietnam Veterans memorial and the Iwo Jima memorial on Saturday.

NBC’s Mark Segraves reported Vietnam Veterans overran the black granite wall that lists the name of all those who paid the ultimate price for their country in the war in Vietnam.

National Park Service Rangers asked the group of veterans to respect the government shutdown but moved aside to allow the vets access to the site.

However, when members of the general public flooded into the site along with the veterans, U.S. Park Police showed up and chased the entire group out of the site. The police then put barricades back into place.

At the Iwo Jima Memorial, water-filled barricades blocked the only road allowing car access to the site.

So the World War II veterans who arrived via an Honor Flight from Syracuse, New York used the same attitude they used against the Axis: they let nothing stop them from accomplishing their goal. They simply joined together to move the barricades.

The Honor Flight crew then took dozens of veterans who need to use wheelchairs to the memorial site.

The Iwo Jima memorial is usually unguarded and unmanned by the National Park Service.

Lawmakers Call Reinforced Barrier At WWII Memorial “Chicago Thuggery”

A group of World War II veterans wanted to pay honor to their fallen brothers-in-arms at the WWII memorial but discovered that the barriers had been connected to each other using wire.  So Texas Republican lawmakers grabbed their wire-cutters and marched to the memorial to let those American heroes who wanted to honor their brothers in to the site.

The open-air memorial usually is not guarded by Park Service staff and there are no barricades to direct traffic flow or impede approach to the monument.

“This is Chicago thuggery,” Rep. Louie Gohmert (R-TX) told Todd Starnes of Fox News. “The president is trying to inflict the most amount of pain and suffering. This is not some bureaucratic mistake. This is Chicago thuggery. You try to make people hurt so they don’t resist what you tell them to do in the future.”

Texas Representative Ralph Hall, 90 years old and himself a World War II veteran, said he was ready for anything the National Park Service would do to him when they showed up to let the veterans in.

“I was ready to go to jail,” said Rep. Hall. “If they got the handcuffs out, I’d have gone right with them.  These veterans made great sacrifice for their country a long time ago and they traveled a lot of miles to get here.  It’s our memorial.”

The Republican lawmakers ended up not needing their wire cutters as someone had already done the job before they arrived with the veterans.

CBS New York: Lockdown Lifted At U.S. Capitol Following Report Of Shots Fired

The lockdown has been lifted at U.S. Capitol following reports of shots fired outside the building.

The lockdown was put in place around 2:20 p.m. and was lifted just before 3 p.m. Thursday.

CBS News’ Bob Orr reported the incident began at 15th Street and Pennsylvania Avenue after a car apparently tried to ram gate at the White House. The driver then fled toward Capitol, Orr reported.

The female driver of the vehicle was shot and wounded, Orr reported.

Source: CBS New York – CBS New York: Lockdown Lifted At U.S. Capitol Following Report Of Shots Fired

ABC News: Attempt to Ram White House Gate Ends With Female Suspect Dead

An attempt to ram the White House gates ended with shots fired, U.S. senators put under lockdown in the Capitol, and a female suspect dead, sources told ABC News.

A police officer was also reported shot, sources said.

Secret Service pursued a suspect from the White House to the Capitol. One agent in a marked Secret Service vehichle was injured when the car in which he was chasing the suspect was upended by an electronic barricade by the Capitol as it rose out of the ground.

Lawmakers reported hearing three pops that sounded like gunfire.

“We heard pops that sounded like shots,” said Sen. Bob Casey, D-Pa.

Source: ABC News – ABC News: Attempt to Ram White House Gate Ends With Female Suspect Dead

CBS DC: Capitol On Lockdown After Shots Fired

The U.S. Capitol building is on lockdown following reports of shots fired nearby.

WNEW’s Kevin Rincon reports that Capitol police rushed the building and a bomb squad is present. Fire trucks are blocking Constitution Avenue and 1st Street and the area is swamped with police cruisers.

There are unconfirmed reports that one police officer has been injured, according to the Associated Press.

People standing outside the Supreme Court across the street from Congress were hurried into the court building by authorities.

Source: CBS DC – CBS DC: Capitol On Lockdown After Shots Fired

NBC News: U.S. Capitol placed on lockdown

The United States Capitol was placed on lockdown Thursday afternoon following reports of shots fired in the vicinity of the chamber. At least one Capitol Police officer was injured.

The FBI was responding to the unconfirmed reports of shots, and a helicopter landed in front of the Capitol. A message from the Capitol Police ordered anyone in a House office to “shelter in place.”

“Close, lock and stay away from external doors and windows,” the message said.

The House recessed, and the Senate went into a quorum call — dispensing momentarily with its official business — shortly thereafter.

Source: NBC News – NBC News: U.S. Capitol placed on lockdown

CBS News: Why is it so difficult to end the government shutdown?

The last time there was a partial shutdown of the federal government, there was a Democrat in the White House and Republicans controlled the House of Representatives. That’s where the similarities end.

As the government shutdown enters its third day, Democrats and Republicans seem no closer to bridging their differences than they were when the shutdown began early Tuesday morning. It’s difficult to say when the standoff will end. The two shutdowns that occurred in 1995 and 1996 lasted a total of 27 days. And back then, the conditions for getting to a deal were much better.

Republicans won the House and Senate in the 1994 midterm elections – the first time the party had a House majority in 40 years. That set up a showdown between House Speaker Newt Gingrich, who had run on a conservative platform, and then-President Bill Clinton. That dispute came in 1995, when Gingrich wanted to balance the budget in a short time frame and Clinton wanted money spent on Democratic priorities. After two separate shutdowns and several weeks, the pressure was too high on Republicans and they cut a deal with Clinton: he would get his priorities, but would have to balance the budget for 10 years.

Source: CBS News – CBS News: Why is it so difficult to end the government shutdown?

ABC News: No Shutdown Deal in Sight After White House Meeting

President Obama and leaders of both houses of Congress left a 90-minute meeting at the White House this evening no more closer to ending a government shutdown.

Neither side gave any indication that the talks, however cordial, moved them toward a compromise.

“They will not negotiate,” House Speaker John Boehner told reporters after leaving the West Wing. “We had a nice conversation, a light conversation, but at some point we’ve got to allow the process the Congress gave us to work out.”

Boehner insists that Democrats in the Senate send negotiators to a conference with House Republicans to work out the differences between the two sides on the budget.

Source: ABC News – ABC News: No Shutdown Deal in Sight After White House Meeting

World Markets React Wednesday To Shutdown

The U.S. government shutdown had an impact on world markets causing concerns the country’s fragile economic condition could be severely impacted by a prolonged closure.

Stock markets in Britain, Germany and France all fell in Wednesday’s trading. U.S. markets fell as well with the Dow Jones Industrial Average falling 0.6% and the S&P 500 falling 0.8%.

Investors are paying lip service to the U.S. shutdown but have expressed more serious concerns the shutdown will result in a delay of raising the U.S. debt ceiling that would have impact on the world markets.

The dollar also continued to fall across the world. The dollar took a hit from 98.62 yen to the dollar before the shutdown to a current level of 97.74. The dollar also fell further against all other Asian currencies.