“Just as Obamacare passed on purely partisan votes, the President’s legacy of partisanship continues. House Republicans, though, are willing to lead and will continue to try and find common ground with Democrats to open this government.”
Congresswoman Virginia Foxx (R-NC) issued the following statement upon the most recent refusal of President Obama and Senate Democrats to work with House Republicans to keep the federal government open. Federal government appropriations expired at 12:00 a.m:
“President Obama, Harry Reid, and Senate Democrats flat-out refused to come to the table to shape a bipartisan solution to keep the government open. I am incredibly disappointed that their ‘our way or the highway’ mindset has carried us past the government funding deadline and started the eighteenth government shutdown.
“House Republicans worked alone in good faith this weekend to keep the government open. We also passed an additional provision that ensures active-duty military will continue to be paid in spite of the Senate stalemate.
“President Obama, Harry Reid, and Senate Democrats flat-out refused to come to the table to shape a bipartisan solution to keep the government open. I am incredibly disappointed that their ‘our way or the highway’ mindset has carried us past the government funding deadline and started the eighteenth government shutdown.
“As the federal funding deadline approached, House Republicans knew the solution to keep government open had to be bipartisan – that’s the reality when Congress is comprised of a Republican House and a Democrat Senate. However, our willingness to work together was not matched by the President or Senate leaders who each repeatedly refused to negotiate with the people's House. We edited our bipartisan government funding proposals down to include basic matters of fairness – extending to individuals the same Obamacare delay the President offered to big businesses and political allies, and ensuring the President and Members of Congress are treated just like American taxpayers under the law. However, even those bipartisan amendments were rejected in favor of shutdown politics.
"Just as Obamacare passed on purely partisan votes, the President’s legacy of partisanship continues. House Republicans, though, are willing to lead and will continue to try and find common ground with Democrats to open this government. That’s why we have requested a conference with the Senate.”
For information about how a government appropriations lapse will impact federal agencies, visit www.foxx.house.gov.
Timeline of House Proposals to Keep Government Open:
September 30, 2013 – House votes to fully fund government, guarantee #FairnessForAll, and conference with the Senate to shape a funding compromise.
September 30, 2013 – House votes to fully fund government and guarantee #FairnessForAll Americans under Obamacare.
September 29, 2013 – House votes to fully fund government, delay Obamacare one year, and permanently repeal Obamacare’s Medical Device Tax.
September 20, 2013 – House votes to fully fund government services, while blocking funding for Obamacare.
