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Federal Government shuts down after budget impasse

WASHINGTON, D.C. – The federal government shut down at midnight Friday after Congress and President Trump failed to reach a deal on a budget.

The government shut down exactly one year after Republican President Donald Trump was sworn into office. The GOP also controls both the Senate and House in Congress.  A short-term budget was passed by the House but rejected by the Senate.

Sen. Chuck Grassley issued the following statement after the failure to pass a Continuing Resolution to keep the government funded resulted in the shutdown of the federal government:

Charles Grassley

“If the 2016 presidential election proved anything, it’s that Americans wanted a new way of doing things, and just want their government to work. That’s true in Iowa and the entire country. It’s disappointing that Democratic leaders chose to vote against legislation that would have kept the government up and running just to make a point about a policy unrelated to government funding. The legislation they opposed also would have extended the Children’s Health Insurance Program for six years, which millions of kids rely on for health care. Shutting down the government forces men and women in uniform to work without pay. It also puts taxpayers on the hook to spend billions of dollars to pay federal workers to sit at home with nothing to show for it.

“Democrats demanded a DACA fix for the government to stay open but didn’t even introduce their legislation to debate. The Senate couldn’t have voted on their bill if we wanted to, because it didn’t exist. The demands also didn’t make sense because the DACA deadline isn’t until March. I introduced legislation in December that included bipartisan provisions like Sen. Durbin’s BRIDGE Act to protect DACA recipients. Since then, I’ve been working regularly with my colleagues on a bill that would achieve real border security, end chain migration and the diversity visa lottery program and provide DACA recipients with legal status. That goal was agreed to in a bicameral, bipartisan meeting at the White House. There’s a deal to be made on DACA and time to make it. Shutting down the government because we didn’t vote on a bill that doesn’t exist is no way to serve Americans or DACA recipients.

“A government with closed doors is bad news for an economy that is finally picking up speed. If the government isn’t re-opened soon, it could mean fewer jobs, lost wages and lower growth. There’s no reason government can’t be re-opened while Congress addresses unrelated issues. I hope Democrats will stop the partisanship, come to the table and end this shutdown.”

The White House released a statement o the government shutdown:

“Senate Democrats own the Schumer Shutdown. Tonight, they put politics above our national security, military families, vulnerable children, and our country’s ability to serve all Americans. We will not negotiate the status of unlawful immigrants while Democrats hold our lawful citizens hostage over their reckless demands. This is the behavior of obstructionist losers, not legislators. When Democrats start paying our armed forces and first responders we will reopen negotiations on immigration reform. During this politically manufactured Schumer Shutdown, the President and his Administration will fight for and protect the American people.”

https://twitter.com/sluttth/status/954593064982597632

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