As of midnight on October 1st, the government shutdown due to the inability of Congress and the Administration to compromise. This situation has caused a furlough of a multitude of government workers and the closure of federal facilities.
Many of the federal government's employees are middle class individuals that for the time being will not receive a paycheck until the impasse ends.
For the time being, while a solution is being reached, the administration should stand with those employees and willingly forego their salaries. In addition, President Obama should encourage Congress to do the same because those workers should not be the only ones to suffer during this time. This is the time for quality leadership, and to show leadership is to lead by example.