US shutdown: Defence staff told to return to work


Defence Secretary Chuck Hagel said the decision was
based on an interpretation of the Pay Our Military Act


Most of the 400,000 US defence department staff
sent home amid the US government shutdown
have been told to return to work next week.
Defence Secretary Chuck Hagel said the decision was
based on an interpretation of the Pay Our Military Act.
A budget row between Republicans and Democrats has
forced the closure of federal services for five days now.
But the sides have now voted to approve back-pay for
the 800,000 federal workers sent home without
salaries.
In a rare moment of bipartisan co-operation, the House
of Representatives on Saturday approved by 407-0 a
bill to pay the federal workers once the shutdown ends.
There remains no sign of any deal on the federal
budget, however.
Republicans who control the House of Representatives
have refused to approve the budget, saying they would
only do so if President Barack Obama's healthcare
reform law was delayed or stripped of funding.
Mr Obama and the Democrats have refused, noting the
law was passed in 2010, subsequently approved by the
Supreme Court, and was a central issue in the 2012
election which Mr Obama won.
'Undiminished'
The Pay Our Military Act was passed by Congress
shortly before the shutdown.
Mr Hagel said earlier in the week he wanted to find a
way to get his civilian staff back to work.
He said lawyers had told him the Pay Our Military Act
permitted employees "whose responsibilities contribute
to the morale, well-being, capabilities and readiness of
service members" to be exempted.
"I expect us to be able to significantly reduce - but not
eliminate - civilian furloughs under this process," he
said.
Secretary of State John Kerry on Saturday warned that
any prolonged shutdown could affect the US
internationally.
But, speaking at a meeting of Asian leaders in
Indonesia, he said any impact was "momentary" and
Washington's commitment to the region was
"undiminished".
President Obama cancelled his Asia visit because of the
shutdown.
In his weekly radio address, Mr Obama urged the
Republicans to "end this farce".
The next key deadline will be 17 October.
Unless Congress agrees to raise the $16.7 trillion (£10.4
trillion) statutory borrowing limit by then, the US could
default on its debts for the first time in its history.
Mr Obama said: "For as reckless as a government
shutdown is, an economic shutdown that comes with
default would be dramatically worse."
Mr Obama has refused to negotiate with the
Republicans until they pass a temporary bill to end the
shutdown and raise the debt limit.
The leader of the Republicans in the House, Eric Cantor,
said negotiations could end the deadlock, but that
President Obama "seems to be unwilling to sit down
and talk with us".
Mr Cantor said: "It doesn't make any sense if the
president has an axe to grind with the opposing party,
why he would want to put the American people in the
middle of that?"

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