House Speaker Mike Johnson blamed Democrats Monday for the government funding stalemate, deriding what he called “costly political games that are being played by Democrats here in Congress.”
“We’re now on Day 13 of the Democrats’ Schumer shutdown,” Johnson said at a news conference, mentioning the Senate Democratic minority leader. “This marks the third week that Democrats have blocked paychecks to our troops, they’ve blocked pay for 2.2 million federal workers and they’ve held critical services that the American people rely upon in limbo.”
The Louisiana Republican added, “At least, they tried to block those checks” to the military, but “President Trump, again showing strong leadership, has stepped up to ensure that our troops are going to be paid on Oct. 15, while we wait for Democrats to stop holding the country hostage.”
Johnson said he and the president spoke “at length” before Mr. Trump left for the Middle East.
“He and I are both so frustrated that Democrats are perfectly happy to do all this damage while they play political stunts,” Johnson said.
“We can hardly believe that they’re willing to go along with this,” Johnson said.
The speaker said “the shutdown did not have to happen” and blasted Democrats for “playing a political game.”
“Democrats today have no leader, no vision, no direction,” Johnson said.
Johnson reiterated that the House has done its job by passing a measure to fund the government until Nov. 21, and he urged five more Democrats in the Senate to back the measure so that it can reach the 60-vote threshold for passage.
“We’re barreling toward one of the longest shutdowns in American history, unless Democrats drop their partisan demands and pass a clean, no-strings-attached budget to reopen the government and pay our federal workers,” Johnson said.
Johnson, who canceled votes in the lower chamber again this week, said the House “will return to legislative session as soon as the Democrats come to their senses and open the government.”
“We’re on Day 13,” he said. “This should end tomorrow.”
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