Obama urges Republicans to "stop this farce" over shutdown In his weekly address, President Barack Obama has said the government shutdown is having a "heartbreaking" impact on ordinary Americans. He also renewed his call to Republicans in Congress, urging them to "stop this farce" and pass a funding bill without conditions. "There is only one way out of this reckless and damaging shutdown: pass a budget that funds our government with no partisan strings attached," Obama said. The Senate has already done this and there are enough Republican and Democratic votes in the House of Representatives willing to do the same and end this shutdown immediately. But the far right of the Republican Party won't let Speaker Boehner give that bill a yes or no vote. Take that vote. Stop this farce. End this shutdown now. Amid protests on Capital Hill on day five of the shutdown, Democrats and Republicans in the House of Representatives have agreed on something - to retrospectively pay 800,000 federal workers, who have been temporarily laid off, once the government reopens. More about: American economy, Barack Obama, Republicans, US government shutdown, USA