Class war

For Ralph Randall, one of the 4,000 air-traffic control employees at the state-owned Federal Aviation Authority who have been made temporarily unemployed, "it's war here!" Randall talks about a class war, saying some "radical politicians" are fighting against the working class, families and people in the public sector.

"They would rather let this country go bankrupt and force more people into unemployment and make our social safety net even more threadbare, instead of making sacrifices together," Randall told Deutsche Welle.

The enforced and unscheduled vacation for Randall and his colleagues was a decision reached in Congress, where US politicians chose to freeze the organization's budget. Randall and the other demonstrators who gathered on Capitol Hill fear that many public sector workers will ultimately face similar fates as the finance ministry coffers decline.

And the clock's ticking: unless Congress agrees to let the treasury increase the US debt ceiling, the government will become unable to meet all its financial commitments as of August 3. It is clear that there's no actual danger of defaulting, the US has made it clear that debts and interest repayments will continue, but to do that without borrowing more would require a 40-percent cut in spending.

It would be up to Congress to decide where the savings could come from - the poor, the old, the sick? Or the military? Worried citizens are now venting their anger over the deadlock in Congress and the Republican demands for spending cuts.

Healthcare set to suffer?

Jane M. Nygaard was among the protesters' ranks, she was a public sector nurse for 35 years and is vice president of the Minneapolis branch of the Federation of Government Employees trade union.

"My biggest concern is that we soon won't have any more highly-qualified public sector staff, which would make public services worse," Nygaard told Deutsche Welle, saying doctors and nurses at public hospitals were doing a good job for relatively poor pay. "If the budgets keep getting frozen and this crusade against government workers continues, then no one will want to do it anymore."

Many of the protesters apportioned blame for this to the Tea Party. They believe that this ultra-conservative group's vocal appeals for as little government spending as possible and as few taxes as possible are influencing Republican policy decisions. For many Tea Party members, the suggestions even from high-ranking Repbulican leaders border on socialism. The trenches have been dug deep, and a compromise with the Democrats looks increasingly unlikely.

Uncertainty fuels fear

It's not just government employees who are concerned: pensioners, the unemployed, students, welfare recipients - anyone with any reliance on government help - could be affected. However, the government is still silent on the all-important question of who that might be, saying it might not be clear before August 2.

"What I can tell you is that as we get closer to that date the Treasury Department will explain how it will manage a situation that is essentially an impossible situation," White House spokesman Jay Carney said on Thursday. "I don't have any more specifics than that."

Tyce Herman is a student at the Stetson University in Florida but he pays his way at college in Washington, writing for an ecologist online blog.

"So far, I haven't taken out any student loans, but I'll soon be enrolling at a law or post-graduate university and I know that I will need a loan for that," Herman said, adding that he worried that interest rates would rise and loans would be harder to come by.

'Tax the rich!'

Tyce Herman believes that everyone would be affected if the US did default on its debt, and suggested a mixture of public sector pay cuts and tax increases as a possible solution.

"It's important to solve this problem, this is about finding an answer, not politics," he said.

Herman may be right, but in Washington it's politics that's dominating the fiscal debate - with the majority-holding Republicans ruling out any tax increases. The occasional war-cry of "tax the rich!" among the demonstrators showed their overriding stance on that issue.

Susan Meehan made her trip to the Capitol dressed all in black; the 73-year-old said her somber clothes should reflect a serious message from a concerned citizen. Only half-jokingly, she described herself as a member of the "radical centrists." She was particularly concerned by the prospect of increased interest rates should ratings agencies choose to downgrade the US' creditworthiness.

"My husband and I are renovating our house and are looking to remortgage to do so. That process could get a lot more costly, I'd estimate at least $25,000."

Meehan said she was worried that this issue would end up affecting her grandchildren too, and that she wished President Barack Obama would use his executive power to unilaterally raise the debt ceiling. Obama, facing a reelection campaign next year, has so far ruled out that step - which would be a drastic one to take, but by no means without precedent.

However, politicians and observers in Washington still seem to hope that common sense will eventually overcome political posturing and that an 11th-hour deal will be reached.

Author: Christina Bergmann, Washington DC / msh
Editor: Rob Mudge