The Treasury Department informed U.S. lawmakers that if they hadn’t reached an agreement by Oct. 17 regarding the government shutdown, financial obligations that were already voted on and approved would have gone into default.

The U.S. came very close to having its credit rating lowered. Again.

The government shutdown cost taxpayers $160 million per day and if America’s credit rating had been lowered, the increase in interest rates would have added billions more to that number.

If a shutdown costs so much money, then why was Congress so determined not to pass a clean continuing resolution?

It all centers around the fact that conservatives are determined to defund the Affordable Care Act to keep it from being implemented as planned on Jan 1, 2014.

In fact, the act better known as “Obamacare,” was taken all the way to the Supreme Court where it was found to be Constitutional.

That didn’t make a difference to conservatives. They voted more than 40 times at a cost of more than $55 million to repeal the act which provides affordable health coverage to those who either don’t qualify for coverage through their employers or who can’t afford insurance payments without the federal subsidies applied.

Since Tea Party-influenced conservatives weren’t able to come up with enough votes to repeal the act, they decided to hold the country hostage instead.

Do you recall when they said that their plan was to make Obama a “one-term president”?

Conservative members of Congress are attempting to prevent, hinder or delay the execution of the Affordable Care Act by force through holding the country hostage by either obstructing bills or through the shutdown of the government itself.

The USC › Title 18 › Part I › Chapter 115 › § 2384 SEDITIOUS CONSPIRACY says that:

“If two or more persons in any State or Territory, or in any place subject to the jurisdiction of the United States, conspire to overthrow, put down, or to destroy by force the Government of the United States, or to levy war against them, or to oppose by force the authority thereof, or by force to prevent, hinder, or delay the execution of any law of the United States, or by force to seize, take, or possess any property of the United States contrary to the authority thereof, they shall each be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than twenty years, or both.”

There have only been 17 shutdowns in the history of the nation. Most last a maximum of three days and some for only hours.

The U.S. has never defaulted on its debt in the past and we are relieved that rational thinking prevailed.

The damage has been done and many innocent people have suffered.

The economy took a direct hit and it may be awhile before we understand all of the negative effects that came from this power struggle.

Things must change; however, if we want to ensure that this act of “seditious conspiracy” will not be repeated.