The federal government shutdown won’t hurt much this week but after two to three weeks, contracts won’t get paid or issued, testing won’t get done. and production of major weapons systems may be disrupted or halted.
That was the consensus of several senior defense executives, including Exelis CEO David Melcher, at a gathering held here today by the Atlantic Council.
If contracts are not paid, then companies’ cash flow will be hurt, Melcher said during his presentation. ”I’m just not a big fan of the brinkmanship being practiced here,” he said when I asked him just what worried him about the next few weeks, especially since the federal debt ceiling must be lifted in the next two weeks to maintain America’s good faith and credit rating.
And then, of course, there’s the whole optics thing — like those World War II veterans shoving metal barriers aside to get to the ugly memorial on the Washington Mall. If you want to know how much this worries Republicans, take note of the fact that Republican National Committee Chairman Reince Preibus has offered to pay to keep the memorial open for the next 30 days.
Keep reading this article at: http://breakingdefense.com/2013/10/02/defense-execs-predict-production-halts-if-fed-shutdown-stretches-to-mid-month
