"National Debt Tops $14 Trillion"

When you read the word "might" below think "might not." Could the Federal government temporarily for a couple of weeks cut its spending in half? The biggest risk from a temporary government shutdown is that most people would see that life continues to go on without the government as deeply involved in their lives. From CBS News:

The latest posting today of the National Debt shows it has topped $14 trillion for the first time.
The U.S. Treasury website today reported that as of last Friday, the last day of 2010, the National Debt stood at $14,025,215,218,708.52.
It took just 7 months for the National Debt to increase from $13 trillion on June 1, 2010 to $14 trillion on Dec. 31. It also means the debt is fast approaching the statutory ceiling $14.294 trillion set by Congress and signed into law by President Obama last February.
The federal government would have to stop borrowing and might even default on its obligations if Congress fails to increase the Debt Ceiling before the limit is reached.. . .