The government was shutdown from October 1^st until October 16^th of 2013. This is because the appropriate funds for the upcoming, now current, fiscal year was never agreed upon by the House and the Senate. The Republican controlled House accepted a bill that created the funds but delayed the initiation of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. The Senate removed the PPACA information from the bill and then passed it, sending it back to the House to be voted upon once more. Again the House added a delay to the PPACA and again passed the bill only to be stopped by the Senate. Because no funding was accepted by September 31^st, the end of each fiscal year, the government was shutdown in order to conserve money. The government was finally set right on October 16^th when the Republicans allowed the bill to pass as originally intended.

The shutdown had many negative economic effects. However, the biggest problem for the government is not how the economy will bounce back, but how other countries perceive us. The shutdown was brought about by strong differences in party opinion between the Democrats and the Republicans. The two parties are growing further and further apart as more radical people on either side are gaining power over their colleagues. The Tea Party, a radical Republican offshoot, forced many of the more moderate Republicans to vote against the bill in the House. This split is horrible for America.

Foreign countries, however, look to the US for economic and political stability. This shutdown has brought out the worst in the US government. How can the International Community expect anything to come out of the United States government if it can’t even figure out how to pay its workers? The United States failed to make the most trivial yet important decision while other countries were waiting for us to participate in far more complex decisions. It seems the international community looks for leadership in a disunited country.

The international community should see that for now, the United States government can’t agree on much of anything. Because of the shortcomings of the US government, the countries around the world can’t trust the US for economic or military help. What can the US do if Congressmen and women are allowed to speak for hours at a time to delay any vote? The shutdown, along with other failures and shortcomings, shows the international community that the US is no longer completely politically unified. It has shown where our weakness is: the split opinions of congress.