Senator Ted Cruz Accuses Democrats Of Forcing A Government Shutdown

"So far, Majority Leader Harry Reid has essentially told the House of Representatives and the American people 'go jump in a lake.' He said 'I'm not willing to compromise, I'm not willing to even talk.' His position is 100 percent ofObamacare must be funded in all instances and other than that, he's going to shut the government down," Cruz told NBC's David Gregory during an interview on Meet the Press.Cruz has long been a staunch opponent to Obamacare, which has already been approved by Congress and signed into law by the President, because he says it is hurting the economy.

"Every survey that's done in this country, the top priority of the American people is jobs and the economy. Under Harry Reid's senate, we don't even talk about jobs and the economy. Obamacare is the biggest job killer in this country and millions of Americans are hurting," Cruz said on Meet the Press.

Cruz's comments came as the House of Representatives brought the government closer to a shutdown as it voted to delay Obama's health care law for a year as part of an emergency spending bill.

By a mostly partisan vote of 231-192, the Republican-controlled House approved the "Obamacare" amendment, despite a veto threat from the White House.

It also voted 248-174 to repeal a medical device tax that aims to help fund healthcare programs under the 2010 law.

And in a sign that lawmakers might be resigned to a government shutdown beginning Tuesday (October 1), the House unanimously approved a bill to keep paying U.S. soldiers in the event the government runs out of money to run many programs.