US Congress hesitates on budget

The US Congress’s latest attempt at crafting a budget plan for 2014 is on track to end up the same way as others have in the past decade, with little or no agreement.

According to Bloomberg, there is little chance that Congressional negotiators can break this pattern of uselessness, even after a 16-day government shutdown in October that cost the US economy $24 billion.
Now budget experts, labor unions and business groups are saying enough’s enough, and questioning why US lawmakers can’t live within their means the way ordinary Americans do and instead lurch from one budget standoff to the next.
Businesses are growing frustrated with Washington’s inability to bridge its differences, saying congressional lawmakers’ habit of governing by crisis and temporary spending bills is hurting the economy and costing jobs.