COUNTDOWN: 10 DAYS TIL DEFAULT Boehner: It's 'The Path We're On'... Refuses To Release Hostages... Says He Doesn't Have Votes To End Shutdown... But He DOES!... Treasury Secretary: GOP 'Playing With Fire'... BUSINESSWEEK: Default 'Will Be An Economic Calamity Like None The World Has Ever Seen'...

WASHINGTON -- WASHINGTON (AP) — The United States moved closer to the possibility of the first-ever default on the government's debt Sunday as Speaker John Boehner adamantly ruled out a House vote on a straightforward bill to boost the borrowing authority without concessions from President Barack Obama.

With no resolution in sight, Treasury Secretary Jack Lew warned that Congress is "playing with fire" as he called on lawmakers to quickly pass legislation re-opening the government and a measure increasing the nation's $16.7 trillion debt limit.

The government shutdown precipitated by the budget brinkmanship entered its sixth day with hundreds of thousands of federal employees furloughed, national parks closed and an array of government services on hold. read more...