"This whole thing is about one thing, the Republican obsession with the Affordable Care Act. That seems to be the only thing that unites the Republican Party right now."
- Barack Obama, U.S. President
Shutdown day four. Clouds are gathering above the White House, as budget deal is still elusive and a deadline on the debt ceiling is approaching. On Thursday IMF managing director Christine Lagarde warned the failure to reach budget deal and raise the debt ceiling would be a far worse threat to the global economy than just government shutdown. At the same time, U.S. House Speaker John Boehner pledged he is determined to prevent a default and assured he will pass a measure through a combination of Democratic and Republican votes by any means necessary. He already promised to violate the so-called Hastert Rule if necessary, which refers to a policy of not bringing the floor by any measures without a majority of Republican votes. On the other hand, Obama, who is trying to pass a straight up-or-down vote on a funding bill that would end the government shutdown, blames Boehner and other Republicans for refusing to support him. Obama also suggested Republicans are obsessed with the idea of killing his signature healthcare law, also known as Obamacare.
Another worrying sign for the economy is the delay of the highly anticipated September jobs report. Even though the postponement was highly expected, it affected traders' and analysts' sentiment, predicting catastrophic outcome. According to analysts' forecasts, the economy has added 180,000 jobs last month, while the unemployment rate stalled at 7.3% over the corresponding period.
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