Government Shutdown

Since the GOP retook the House, the chamber once brought the country to the brink of a debt default and once shut down the government. But in election years, including this one, there's no such drama.

Some Michigan seniors may be going hungry thanks to the government shutdown. In western Kent County alone, more than 1,300 low-income seniors depend on a government surplus food program. But the USDA has announced that the program is hold until further notice.

A lack of funding to labs is likely to mean an early death for thousands of mice used in scientific and medical research. The loss of specialty mice, many of which have genes that can cause them to develop versions of human diseases, is especially troubling to scientists — and expensive.

President Obama cancelled a planned trip to Asia this week to deal with the political crisis at home. That's disappointed — even worried — some of America's friends in the region who are counting on the United States to stand up to an increasingly assertive China.

The Clinical Center at the National Institutes of Health in Maryland is often the last resort for patients who have mysterious, rare or terminal diseases. Patients sometimes call it the "House of Hope." But the government shutdown may mean that prospective patients will be turned away.

In his interview with President Obama on Monday, NPR's Steve Inskeep says some of the president's remarks were reminiscent of what he said in 2011 during the debt ceiling crisis. One stark difference, however, was the president's firmness. "Absolutely I will not negotiate," the president said.