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The game of political chicken continued into the weekend as Republicans and Democrats maneuvered for advantage on government spending, "Obamacare," and a possible government shutdown.

Not long after House Republicans on Friday passed a spending bill stripped of funding for the Affordable Care Act, President Obama called Speaker John Boehner.

It was a short conversation.

Mr. Obama told Mr. Boehner he would not negotiate over the debt limit. The speaker told the president he was sorry to hear that. Have a nice weekend and goodbye.

Boehner and the GOP seem to be in more of a bind than Obama and congressional Democrats.

Conservatives in the GOP-controlled House (minus a few Republicans who voted against the bill Friday) were egged on by Sens. Ted Cruz of Texas and Mike Lee of Utah 鈥� tea party favorites who vow to fight, Churchill-like, to kill Obamacare in the Senate.

With Democrats in control of the upper chamber and prominent Republicans there vocally opposed to what they see as a potentially suicidal effort to shut down the government over the new health-care law, there鈥檚 no way that could succeed.

鈥淎mericans hate government, but they don't want it to stop functioning," Sen. John McCain (R) of Arizona said recently on CNN.

鈥淚 didn鈥檛 go to Harvard or Princeton, but I can count 鈥� the defunding box canyon is a tactic that will fail and weaken our position,鈥� tweeted Sen. Bob Corker (R) of Tennessee. (The 鈥淗arvard or Princeton鈥� gibe was aimed at double Ivy Leaguer Senator Cruz.)

A government shutdown, former Florida 聽Gov. Jeb Bush (R) says, could make things 鈥渜uite dicey for the Republican Party."

The best thing to do, other well-known Republicans say, is to grudgingly accept Obamacare and move on. Holding that view are New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal, and Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker, who says that shutting down the government would violate the public trust.

"The best way to fight it is in the 2014 elections," Governor Walker said Friday in an Associated Press interview.

Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder, hosting a state Republican conference on Mackinac Island where Walker, Governor Jindal, and Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky are set to appear, said a shutdown "reflects poorly on the national political culture."

Another Republican governor 鈥� Brian Sandoval of Nevada 鈥� gave the GOP鈥檚 weekly radio address Saturday.

As governors often do, he said it鈥檚 鈥渘o accident鈥� that Republican governors lead states with thriving economies.

鈥淲e reduce government, balance budgets, and keep taxes as low as possible,鈥� he said. 鈥淐an you just imagine what our economy would look like today if Washington would just take that approach?"

More pointedly, he addressed the fractious situation back East.

鈥淟ike Washington, Nevada has a politically divided government, but that hasn鈥檛 stopped our efforts to grow Nevada鈥檚 economy,鈥� he said. 鈥淕ood executives, like all good leaders, must expect opposition when making decisions or when making or enforcing the law. But executives must engage those that disagree with them. They must listen to all ideas, persuade when possible, and respectfully and firmly disagree when necessary.鈥�

Governor Sandoval did not address the controversial Affordable Health Care Act, and a senior official for Senate majority leader Harry Reid (D) of Nevada gleefully pointed out why.

Kristen Orthman, press secretary for Senator Reid, tweeted: 鈥淒o Rs realize that they've tapped a GOP Gov who is fully implementing Obamacare to deliver their weekly address??鈥�

As the Hill magazine notes, Sandoval has worked to roll out two of Obamacare鈥檚 most important provisions: establishing Nevada鈥檚 health insurance exchange and expanding the state鈥檚 Medicaid program.

In his own radio address Saturday, Obama took aim at the GOP鈥檚 鈥渇ar right.鈥�

鈥淒emocrats and some reasonable Republicans are willing to raise the debt ceiling and pass a sensible budget 鈥� one that cuts spending on what we don鈥檛 need so we can invest in what we do. And I want to work with those Democrats and Republicans on a better bargain for the middle class,鈥� he said. 鈥淏ut there鈥檚 also a faction on the far right of the Republican聽Party who鈥檝e convinced their leadership to threaten a government shutdown if they can鈥檛 shut off the Affordable Care Act.聽Some are actually willing to plunge America into default if they can鈥檛 defund the Affordable Care Act.鈥�

鈥淭hink about that.聽They鈥檇 actually plunge this country back into recession 鈥� all to deny the basic security of health care to millions of Americans,鈥� Obama said. 鈥淲ell, that鈥檚 not happening.聽And they know it鈥檚 not happening.鈥�