Washington, DC [US], October 2 (ANI): White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt on Wednesday (local time) accused Democrats in Congress of being responsible for the shutdown of the United States government, calling their actions “pure partisan politics.”
“Democrats in Congress have officially shut down the United States government. House Republicans passed a nonpartisan, clean piece of legislation to extend current government funding until November 21st, but nearly every single Democrat senator voted against this bill. This was the exact same bill that Democrats approved six months ago in March, just adjusted for inflation,” Leavitt told reporters at the White House.
She emphasized that Democrats had supported similar funding extensions multiple times in the past. “This is the same kind of clean funding bill that Democrats passed 13 separate times when they held the majority during Joe Biden’s administration,” she said.
Leavitt further alleged that Democrats shut down the government because Republicans refused to use taxpayer money to provide healthcare for undocumented migrants. “The American people woke up this morning and asked the obvious question: Why is the government shut down right now? The answer is pure partisan politics being played by the Democrat party. The Democrats shut down the government because President Trump and the Republicans will not force American taxpayers to pay for free healthcare for illegal aliens. America is $37 trillion in debt. We cannot afford to provide taxpayer-funded free healthcare to illegals who broke the law to enter our country,” she said.
The shutdown began on Tuesday after Congress failed to reach a funding deal, leaving federal agencies without appropriations to continue operations, CNN reported. Both parties have since blamed each other for the deadlock.
Republicans maintain that Democrats should simply agree to extend current funding levels for another seven weeks, while Democrats have refused to back any extension without concessions in the Senate.
Democratic leaders Hakeem Jeffries and Chuck Schumer issued a joint statement, blaming former President Donald Trump and Republicans for the crisis. “After months of making life harder and more expensive, Donald Trump and Republicans have now shut down the federal government because they do not want to protect the healthcare of the American people,” they said.
The standoff has left Washington uncertain about the path forward as the shutdown threatens to impact millions of Americans if prolonged. (ANI)
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