The shutdown will not save money. First, the shutdown does not affect expenditures. Those have already been voted in, and the shutdown will not retroactively c

The shutdown will not save money. First, the shutdown does not affect expenditures. Those have already been voted in, and the shutdown will not retroactively change those allocations. Those that voted for the shutdown do not intend to revisit those allocations because they benefit from them just as much as anyone else involved in legislation. In particular the ACA already has the force of law as non-discretionary allocation. Second, those of us who remember the first time through this particular political dysfunction in the ninties can do the math. It cost us a couple billion back then. This time it's going to cost us an estimated 2% of our GDP this year. If you do not understand the implications of that number, I'm not sure what to even type. And that's assuming the political theater is concluded before the treasury starts defaulting on already sold bills as part of the debt ceiling fight. If that happens we enter a new global economic regime. The US will lose its astoundingly privileged place in the global financial markets as the lender of last resort. A very likely outcome is that Russia or China will ascend rapidly to become the world's foremost economic power for the next century or more. The only people who benefit from this action are those who think they can loot the building while it burns.