America's government shut down: Who's to blame?

America's government shutdown: No high ground should be claimed by either party 

I deeply disagree with the Republicans for allowing a subgroup within their party to hold our government operations hostage in their fight for political power. They know the Democrats cannot fold on Obamacare without a massive loss of face, yet they persist.

I'm no fan of Obamacare, either, mainly because its rules and regulations resulted from a grand bargain between the Democrats and lobbyists for the pharmaceutical and insurance industries. It's not difficult to imagine the many millions of dollars going into the Democratic campaign coffers in exchange for a seat at the health care law design table.

However, as reprehensible as the process was, it was done within the laws of our nation by those who were legally elected to represent us during the 2008 campaign.

The Republicans' strategy to defund Obamacare has resulted in the government shutdown, which is causing harm to millions of innocent Americans. They could have chosen to take a legal path to change the law — by winning the next couple of elections and returning to majority power in both houses and the presidency. Clearly they rightfully aren't optimistic about their chances.

The current GOP strategy nearly guarantees it will never happen. By following the lead of their tea party loyalist members, the Republicans have deeply offended the majority of moderate voters whether registered as Democrats, Republicans or independents. Along with the steadily declining voting power of white Americans and the complete failure of the GOP to attract minority voters, this leaves the Grand Old Party in immediate danger of becoming the former Grand Old Party.

Neither party can claim high ground in the current debate because both have failed to even slightly govern in the best interests of the vast majority of Americans during this fight for political power — which is what it's really about.

A majority of Americans are worried about jobs, saving money, affordable educations, access to health care, feeding their families, shelter and being able to retire. I did not mention them being worried about our current national debt, upcoming entitlement debts or even climate change. Most Americans don't have time to worry about these things because most are focused on the immediacy of their own here and now.

The Times-News recently published an article about the Defense Department recalling all 350,000 employees furloughed by the government shutdown. What motivated that? Did some lobbyists for the military-industrial complex agree to cover their costs in order to keep their businesses flourishing?

I also read that a special bipartisan bill was passed ensuring that all furloughed federal employees will receive full pay when the shutdown is over. Hmm — I wonder if it had anything to do with our elected officials making sure they and their staffs were taken care of.

Locally, many of our neighbors will feel the negative side effects of these destructive politics. It began with the Department of Interior shutting down all public services along the Blue Ridge Parkway. The majority of the Parkway's visitors come during the fall leaf season, which is just underway. If you were a prospective visitor and you learned all public services along the parkway will be closed, would you bother visiting?

A specific local situation inspired this column. The Pisgah Inn was forced to shut down under orders of the Department of Interior in Washington. This is a privately operated business in which the proprietor of the inn leases the facilities from the National Park Service and then attempts to make a profit by providing food, shelter and restrooms for the public. I don't know all of the details, but it likely costs the government more to keep it shut because I'm guessing the operator doesn't have to pay rent when forced to close, and additional costs are being incurred by the government in providing park rangers to guard the entrances.

Besides the Pisgah Inn proprietor, all tourism-based businesses in the communities along the hundreds of miles of the Parkway, including Hendersonville, will be harmed. Tourists and the dollars they bring in will be sorely missed by these small businesses that depend on the revenues generated during their version of America's Christmas holiday to keep them afloat during slower seasons.

I wonder if U.S. Rep. Mark Meadows is going to introduce a bill to reimburse all of the businesses in his district for their losses during the shutdown, especially since he was one of the primary leaders in linking defunding Obamacare to the budget impasse, which led directly to the shutdown.

Meadows campaigned on a promise to govern in the best interests of all of the more than 700,000 people in his district. However, his actions during events leading up to the government shutdown prove he values and deserves the head of the Asheville Tea Party recently saying he is “turning out to be our poster boy.” If I had to label his behavior in office so far, I would call it governing for the vocal minority.

I endorsed Mr. Meadows during his initial campaign. With all due respect, all I can say now is: Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me.

I reserve the right to change my mind, but only if I see strong and consistent evidence that the congressman's campaign promises will be matched by his actions.

Mike Tower