MEMO: Why We Can't Afford Another #GOPShutdown

With only 7 legislative days until the budget deadline, Republicans are growing louder and louder in their pledges to shut down the government to push their radical agenda.  But the American people are loud and clear, too: they know our country can't afford another misguided, unnecessary Republican Government Shutdown.

Americans remember Republicans' first act – the Republican Government Shutdown of 2013 – and they remember the needless destruction of that GOP-concocted crisis:

• The GOP Shutdown cost our economy $24 billion.

"The S&P…says that the shutdown has taken $24 billion out of the economy and cut 0.6% off of yearly fourth quarter GDP growth."

• The shutdown lost Americans at least 120,000 private sector jobs.

"Using actual high-frequency economic data from the period of the shutdown, the Council of Economic Advisers has estimated that the combination of the Federal government shutdown and debt limit brinksmanship may have…resulted in 120,000 fewer private sector jobs created between October 1 and October 12. The shutdown lasted until October 16, meaning that the total impact may have been even greater."

• The Republican Government Shutdown stalled veterans' disability claims.

"They were up and running, things were going pretty smooth, they reduced [the backlog] by about one-third [in the last two quarters]," said Garry Augustine, executive director of Disabled American Veterans. "And boom, the shutdown comes, they slow down considerably and in some cases probably stopped altogether."

• It prevented sick Americans from enrolling in clinical trials – with most National Science Foundation, NIH, and CDC employees furloughed.

"The shutdown prevented hundreds of patients from enrolling in National Institutes of Health (NIH) clinical trials…[It] Brought new Federal research activities to a standstill, with 98 percent of National Science Foundation (NSF), nearly three-quarters of NIH, and two-thirds of CDC employees furloughed."

• Republicans forced Head Start programs for children to shut down. 

The shutdown "forced Head Start grantees serving nearly 6,300 children to close their centers for up to nine days (before re-opening with the help of private philanthropists or their state)."

• The GOP Shutdown severelyundercutsmall businesses.  

American entrepreneurs and small businesses were cut off from millions of dollars in SBA loans – and small businesses with government contracts faced abrupt payment delays and cutbacks.

New York Times: Without Services, Small Businesses Feel the Pinch;

Wall Street Journal: Loan Spigot Runs Dry for Small Businesses;

New York Times: Small businesses on edge due to shutdown

• Republicans delayed almost $4 billion in tax refunds.

The shutdown "delayed almost $4 billion in tax refunds" to taxpayers.

Speaker Boehner, the American people don't deserve – and can't afford – a repeat performance of the disastrous Republican Government Shutdown.  It's time to show some leadership and join Democrats at the negotiating table to avoid the next #GOPShutdown.