The US government is shutting down, let's celebrate!
US Republicans have voted to postpone Barack Obama's heathcare reforms, setting up a high-stakes clash with Democrats that could spark the first American government shutdown in 17 years.
With less than 48 hours to go until existing federal government spending authority expires on Monday night, House Republicans passed a continuing budget resolution until December, but only if Obamacare is delayed for a year and stripped of a key tax on medical devices.
But even before the vote took place in the early hours of Sunday morning, Democrats said they would reject the plan - and the White House issued a statement saying Obama would veto it should it ever reach his desk.
The Senate majority leader, Harry Reid, issued a statement on Saturday saying his chamber would not accept the House Republicans' plan, and any attempt to delay the healthcare law would be pointless.
House Republicans also plan to pass separate legislation ensuring that American troops continue to receive pay during any ensuing shutdown, exempting a politically sensitive area of federal government from the consequences of their standoff with Obama.
The Senate has already rejected one House attempt to link spending authorisation to Obamacare, but with the majority Republican caucus seemingly united in its desire for a showdown over Obamacare the spending resolution has been passed back a second time to the Senate.
Obama has accused Republicans of holding the US economy to ransom and has upped his rhetoric in recent days to make it clear he would also veto any resolution that involved Obamacare.
The House speaker, John Boehner, refused to speak to reporters after his meeting with Republicans on Saturday afternoon, although he is expected to begin outlining the plan on the floor of the House.
The last time the US government was deprived of funding in this way was under the presidency of Bill Clinton in 1995 and 1996, when he clashed with Republican speaker Newt Gringrich.
Under the Anti-Deficiency Act, passed after the American civil war, the federal government is forbidden from incurring costs that have not been explicitly authorised by Congress.
Only staff involved in "emergencies involving the safety of human life or the protection of property" are exempt, which in practice means many "essential workers" deemed vital to security and law enforcement.
But hundreds of thousands of other federal employes will be "furloughed" or told to stay at home from Tuesday morning if Congress cannot find a way around the growing impasse. Social security and other benefit payments may also be delayed.
In a speech on Friday, Obama warned that military personnel on active duty could see their pay disrupted but the Republican plan to exempt armed forces removes one area of leverage that might have forced conservatives to back down.
The theatrical production of "Obamacare" has been effective at completely covering up any information of import in right/left rhetoric, ensuring that the masses remain devoted to funding their favorite insurance and drug companies...