Barack Obama speaking at the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation Phoenix Awards Dinner:

“[W]e’re seeing an extreme faction of these [Republicans] convincing their leadership to threaten to shut down the government if we don’t shut down the Affordable Care Act. Some of them are actually willing to see the United States default on its obligations and plunge this country back into a painful recession if they can’t deny the basic security of health care to millions of Americans. … Let me say as clearly as I can: It is not going to happen. We have come too far. We’ve overcome far darker threats than those. We will not negotiate over whether or not America should keep its word and meet its obligations. We’re not going to allow anyone to inflict economic pain on millions of our own people just to make an ideological point.”

“We’re not going to allow anyone to inflict economic pain on millions of our own people just to make an ideological point.” Thank goodness Mr. Obama’s never done that!