See What The Officials You Elected Have To Say About The Government Shutdown

Hours into the government shutdown triggered by political standoff between Democrats and Republicans, local federal representatives issued their statements.

A government spending deal broke down over the past two days due to disagreements about immigration and health care. In the Senate, Democrats blocked a Continuing Resolution approved by Republicans in the House of Representatives Friday night due to the disagreements.

Congressman Brian Fitzpatrick sent out a press release noting that he would not accept any pay while the impasse was in progress. Fitzpatrick, a moderate Republican, has previously proposed a “no budget, no pay” rule and has called for a balanced budget to be passed by the federal government.

Below is the congressman’s Saturday morning statement:

“My very first day in office, I introduced a massive government reform package that included, among many other things, a constitutional amendment prohibiting Members of Congress from being paid unless a budget is passed, a common sense measure to force the extreme partisans on both sides to do what every leader in every other aspect of society does: work together to build consensus and find common ground. FIX, NOT FIGHT.

My Legislation was the direct result of my time as an FBI Agent in the Political Corruption Unit arresting corrupt politicians, both Republican and Democrat. When you spend a career arresting corrupt politicians, you get a very clear sense for what is needed to fix the broken system. We need my reform legislation passed now more than ever.

I will be leading by example. I have notified House Administration that I will not accept any pay during any ‘shutdown’ period. And this is not merely ‘delaying’ pay, a gimmick adopted by many, but rather this will be complete forfeiture, in the spirit of my own legislation. And I am not only encouraging, but I am urging, all of my colleagues, both Republican and Democrat, to do the same. Let’s send a message to the extreme partisans on both sides: do your job or don’t get paid.

The brokenness in Washington DC is also Exhibit A of the need to expand the Problem Solvers Caucus in Congress, a bipartisan group who believe in building consensus and coming together for the betterment of our country, a group who rejects the tactics of the extreme partisans on both sides, a group who rejects those who put their party ahead of their country. The Problem Solvers Caucus is what will save our great nation.

We need constitutional term limits; we need a balanced budget amendment; we need no budget no pay; we need redistricting reform; we need to abolish congressional pensions; and we need campaign finance reform. AND WE NEED THEM NOW. These positions know no party lines. They are common sense American principals that address the root causes of the systemic problems in Washington. They are common sense American principals that will save our country.”

Republican Sen. Pat Toomey, who represents Pennsylvania, released the following statement:

“In a transparent political ploy, Senate Democrats prioritized amnesty for select illegal immigrants over governing, supporting our military, and providing health insurance to poor and middle-income children. Tonight’s vote by Senate Democrats is not rooted in principle or even ideology-they openly support every provision in the bill they voted against–rather it is a crass political calculation meant to appease the extreme left wing of their party. This is a mess that the Senate Democrats created, holding the entire country hostage because of an immigration issue that does not fully materialize until March. It is my hope that cooler heads prevail and a deal to keep the government open can be reached in short order.”

Sen. Bob Casey, the Democrat who represents Pennsylvania, issued the below statement on the government shutdown:

“Republicans who control Congress and President Trump have provoked a government shutdown by refusing to work in a bipartisan way on a funding agreement that protects the middle class, retiree pensioners and 800,000 people who receive health care through community health centers. The Republican funding plan shortchanges our veterans, community health centers, infants and mothers who receive home visitations, retired coal miners and other Pennsylvania workers and those dealing with the opioid crisis. There are bipartisan agreements in place that can help Pennsylvania families, but Republicans gave in to the extreme right wing of their party and walked away. I was not elected to genuflect to the demands of extreme House Republicans. I have an obligation to fight for the millions of families left out of this bill. For over 100 days, Republicans didn’t do a damn thing for kids impacted by the lapse in reauthorization of the Children’s House Insurance Program (CHIP). Instead, Republicans in Washington spent months working to pass massive tax cuts for their big corporate donors. Now all of a sudden they pretend like they care? If they truly cared for children like they cared for big corporations then the CHIP extension would be permanent.

From the White House, Republican President Donald Trump tweeted about the government shutdown several times Saturday morning.

“This is the One Year Anniversary of my Presidency and the Democrats wanted to give me a nice present,” Trump wrote, referencing that he was sworn in one year ago Saturday.

While aboard Air Force Two on a trip to the Middle East, Vice President Mike Pence blamed Democrats and said the failure to approve a funding bill was “unconscionable.”

The showdown on whether the government would remain open was a topic of discussion among Democratic activists at the Friday’s Without Fitzpatrick demonstration outside his office in Middletown.

“The Republican Party controls both houses of Congress and the Presidency. This government shutdown is a testament to their inability to negotiate or to govern,” Kierstyn Zolfo of Newtown said. “Brian Fitzpatrick and the GOP just kept passing continuing resolution after continuing resolution, just kicking the can down the road and now they couldn’t even do that much.”