Obama's Campaign of Pain leaves families of fallen soldiers without deserved 'death gratuities'

Absolutely everyone is outraged over the report that grieving families are being denied their rightful benefits due to the ongoing government shutdown. Approximately $100,000 in "death gratuities" are being delayed to families who need them to cover funeral and transportation costs for the deceased.

LOS ANGELES, CA (Catholic Online) - Both Republicans and Democrats are voicing anger over the delay of the benefits normally paid to the families of recently deceased war veterans. Republican House Speaker John Boehner was the first person to speak out about the issue, promising that the House "would act specifically on this."

It is possible that as early as today and exception would begin making its way through Congress.

Democratic Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid referred to the problem as "shameful and embarrassing."

Embarrassing is right. Democrats, and in particular President Obama, are caught in an impasse because they flatly refuse to negotiate with Republicans on a solution to Obamacare and the out of control debt spending that most Americans agree are in need of immediate repair.

As Obama continues to hold up any progress by refusing to settle down at the table with Republicans, more and more problems are manifesting as a result of the government shutdown.

Children have been denied access to life-saving clinical trials, handles have been removed from spigots on water fountains along major bike and hiking trails between Philadelphia and Washington -to prevent people from using them, and the payment of military death benefits are being delayed.

Meanwhile thousands of federal workers sit home while others try to do absurd things such as close open-air memorials and private historic sites such as Mount Vernon.

All of the federal workers now on the job are working without pay, but will receive back pay as soon as the shutdown ends.

A separate bill, the "Pay Our Military Act" which was previously approved, does allow for the military to receive pay through the shutdown, but military overseers did not apparently understand, or agree, that death gratuities should be paid as part of the bill. On Tuesday, Boehner said that was supposed to be the understanding.

Regardless, the specific situation is on its way to resolution.

Meanwhile, the shutdown continues and threatens to worsen as Obama demands an increase to his debt ceiling limit without any agreements to rein in spending. It remains unlikely as of Wednesday morning that either side will capitulate.

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