Speaker Boehner has a choice to make‏

Dan Pfeiffer. The White House

Right now, Congress has two jobs: to pass a budget that invests in the middle class and to pay the bills it has already incurred.

But instead of doing their jobs, a few reckless Republicans in Congress are so obsessed with refighting old political battles over Obamacare that they're threatening to shut down the government and stop paying the country's bills.

On Friday, these House Republicans voted to shut down the government unless the Senate and the President agree to defund Obamacare. This week, instead of playing those games, the Senate is set to send a simple budget resolution back to the House -- one that keeps the government open for a few months while leaders continue to work on a budget that creates jobs and cuts the deficit in a balanced way. That's a reasonable solution.

But some Republicans still care more about scoring political points on Obamacare than keeping the government open and our economy moving forward.

This kind of up-to-the-final-hour brinksmanship is beyond irresponsible, and it could reverse the hard-earned economic progress we've made by creating another crisis. Unfortunately, we've watched them run this play before, and we know what it looks like. Two years ago, these Republicans held the economy hostage, and as a result our credit rating was downgraded, the stock market plummeted 17 percent, consumer confidence dropped like a rock, and businesses stopped hiring.

That's why it's time for GOP lawmakers to pass a simple budget resolution that doesn't defund Obamacare and move on.

In the five years since the financial crisis began, the American people have pushed the economy forward. Over the past 42 months, businesses have added 7.5 million jobs. American manufacturing is growing again, and the auto industry is back. We've reformed Wall Street so that no company is ever again too big to fail and created the toughest consumer financial protections this nation has ever seen. We've cut our deficit by more than half, made the tax code more progressive, and reformed our health care system.

Today, there is record demand for American products abroad, and our tech companies are booming. The housing market is coming back ─ sales of existing homes are up by double digits and new foreclosures are down to the lowest levels since the start of 2006.

We need to keep building momentum. So we're asking Congress to join the President in creating a better bargain for the middle class, and give up on manufacturing a new political crisis. For that to happen, reasonable Congressional Republicans have to stand up to a few extreme members of their party for the good of the country and our economy.

From the day he took office, President Obama has been open to any good idea when it comes to the budget, as long as supporting middle-class families remains our North Star. Republicans won't extract concessions over the full faith and credit of the United States.

Will you help spread the word? Share this message so that people know what's about to happen to the economy if Congress doesn't act.

Dan Pfeiffer

Senior Advisor

The White House

@Pfeiffer44