NRF: Shutdown deal just postpones issues

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Matthew Shay, president and CEO of the National Retail Federation, released a statement on the decision to reopen the federal government through Jan. 15 and raise the debt ceiling until Feb. 7. Shay said that while the agreement provides some satisfaction, it essentially continues debate and postpones difficult economic decisions that must be made.

“As we head into the holiday shopping season, retailers and consumers need stability and certainty from policy-makers in Washington and assurance that the economy will not implode due to their actions or more important, lack thereof,” said Shay. “This new norm of legislating from crisis to crisis is no way to govern.”

Shay also said that the economic recovery is retail-led and consumer-driven, and that cuts in consumer spending hurt retailers as well as the economy as a whole and U.S. taxpayers.

“Today’s decision will provide some breathing room for legislators to negotiate and compromise, but it is not a solution to our long-term economic or fiscal challenges,” concluded Shay.