WHAT THEY ARE SAYING: RSC Members Sound Off on the Devastating Effects of the Democrat Shutdown

WASHINGTON, D.C. — As the government shutdown stretches into the ninth day, members of the Republican Study Committee (RSC) are highlighting the devastating impacts of the Democrat-led shutdown in a series of op-eds detailing how this political charade is hurting American families, federal employees, agricultural producers, and servicemembers.

Here’s what members of the RSC are saying:

Rep. Tracey Mann (KS-01) in The Wichita Eagle: “Our seven-week continuing resolution allows the government to operate at current funding levels while Congress finishes up the appropriations process. Instead of working with Republicans, Democrat leadership, at the beck and call of far-left activists, demanded that Congress change Medicaid rules to allow taxpayer money to go to free health care for people in the country illegally, spend $500 million in supporting radical public news outlets and add $1.5 trillion in new spending on a COVID-19-era health care policy issue completely unrelated to government funding.”

Rep. Jodey Arrington (TX-19) in The Lubbock Avalanche-Journal: “Remember, in 2020, every Democratic presidential candidate promised healthcare for illegal immigrants, then Biden expanded Obamacare to illegal immigrants by executive order, and then 43 Democrat Senators voted AGAINST a ban on funding health care for illegal immigrants just a few months ago. When people show you who they are, believe them. Democrats don’t have the time or credibility to rebrand themselves as anything other than what they’ve become: open-border radicals.”

Rep. Stephanie Bice (OK-05) in The Washington Reporter: “They’re not actually interested in helping the American people,” she said. “[Jeffries is] standing on the front steps of the U.S. Capitol trying to blame Republicans for a shutdown that is clearly on the shoulders of Democrats. The fact is, Republican offices are open. My office in Washington, D.C. is open for business. My office in Oklahoma City is open for business. We are taking calls. We are helping constituents with case work…Evidently, Hakeem is more interested in being on television and being on the front steps of the Capitol than he is about working for the American people.”

Rep. Morgan Griffith (VA-09) in The Cardinal News: “Democrats in the U.S. Senate, including Virginia’s Democratic senators, repeatedly rejected the noncontroversial Continuing Resolution that funds the government through November 21. This decision breaks from recent Democratic tradition: under President Biden, the Democratic conference supported 13 short-term Continuing Resolutions! But this time, Democrats are mostly united in their opposition to the Republican Continuing Resolution. Many of them, including Virginia’s Democratic senators, say they are using their shutdown to force Republicans to the negotiating table.”

Rep. Dave Taylor (OH-02) in The Highland County Press: “I am extremely optimistic that the Rural Health Transformation Program will have a transformative effect on rural Ohio by addressing the health care workforce shortage, helping ensure sustainable access to care, and accelerating collaborative efforts among rural providers. Unfortunately, D.C. Democrats are insisting that the federal government stay shut down unless Republicans give in to their list of demands. One of those demands: repealing the $50 billion Rural Health Transformation Program.”

Rep. Eric Burlison (MO-07) in The Washington Examiner: “If Democrats want to hold the government hostage because we refuse to burden taxpayers with another trillion-dollar list of demands that would erase all the progress Republicans have made over the past eight months, let them. Republicans were not sent to Washington to rubber-stamp Joe Biden’s COVID-era policies, allowing inflation to spiral further out of control. Our broken healthcare system does deserve attention, but monthly subsidy checks to insurance companies while shifting rising healthcare costs onto taxpayers isn’t “making health care more affordable.”

Rep. Dusty Johnson (SD-AL) in The Dakota Scout: “On Wednesday night 52 Republicans and three Democrats voted to keep the government open. Unfortunately, 60 votes were required, so the government shut down. They decided to hold the federal government and American people hostage over partisan policy demands like health care subsidies for illegal immigrants and Americans making $110,000 a year. Their laundry list of demands totals $1.5 trillion – an absurd amount of money to ask for during a government shutdown. The Democrats’ shutdown is withholding the pay of hundreds of thousands of government employees across the country.”

Rep. Lance Gooden (TX-05) in The Washington Times: “Two weeks ago, House Republicans acted responsibly. We passed a clean, bipartisan, short-term funding bill to keep the government operating. It was straightforward — no gimmicks, no partisan riders — just keeping essential services running at current levels and allowing more time to finish the appropriations process.”

Rep. Randy Fine (FL-06) in The Orlando Sentinel: “Here in Florida, we know better than anyone that hurricane season is the worst time for Washington’s political games. Yet Democrats are once again showing they are willing to put homes and lives in danger to advance their radical liberal agenda. As a result of Democrat demands, the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) has ground to a halt. That leaves families without the ability to get coverage they will desperately need in the midst of a disaster. “

Rep. Vern Buchanan (FL-16) in The Tampa Bay Times: “Following recent acts of tragic political violence, I hope that my Democratic colleagues will join me to show all Americans that Congress is unified behind our basic Constitutional responsibility to fund the government. Now is the time for unity, not partisan games. Our clean continuing resolution offers a path forward to keep the government open and to continue to work on long-term funding bills. This is how Congress should work—through cooperation, not brinkmanship. I stand ready to work across the aisle to deliver responsible solutions, and I urge my Democratic colleagues to join me so we can avoid a costly shutdown.”

Rep. Jeff Crank (CO-05) in The Denver Gazette: “The solution is clear. Democrats need to put partisanship aside and pass the clean CR to allow Congress the time it needs to finalize full-year spending bills through regular order. By failing to do so, Democrats have chosen to shut down the government. I have done my job, along with House Republicans, by voting to keep the government open and accessible for the American people.”

Rep. Adrian Smith (NE-03) in The Wolf: “Each day hardworking parents, farmers, ranchers, linesmen, teachers, and laborers across the country get out of bed and do what it takes to provide for their families and pay their bills. This week, as Americans continued to go to work, unfortunately ideological, partisan demands from Senate Democrats again obstructed commonsense legislation to keep the federal government open. As a result, funding for the government lapsed, initiating a shutdown.”