Mr. President, today I wish to describe the damaging impacts that the Federal Government shutdown is having on the nine treaty tribes in my home State of South Dakota and across Indian Country. It is my hope that today we can come to…

Madam President, we are now in the third week of government shutdown. We are facing an imminent debt limit crisis. It seems that it has become a pattern around here that we live from crisis to crisis. I hope we do something about that. We…

I ask consent to talk for up to 15 minutes. The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.

It was very disturbing to them.

That family that drove that far found themselves not being able to view Mount Rushmore.

I had assumed it was for protection of individuals that may go onto that property or for liability reasons.

I don't believe that people's safety has been a priority in this situation.

I wish we could have done it from the very beginning.

Madam President, a week ago today western South Dakota was preparing for a coming storm, but no one had any idea it would be one of the worst and most devastating snowstorms in that area's history. I grew up in western South Dakota. I was…

That is not a responsible way to operate an enterprise like the U.S. Government.

We are on--I guess we're in the middle of what really is, should be, an avoidable partial government shutdown that nobody wants, but nobody seems willing or able to end.

But isn't having some funding better than having no funding?

I think we can do much better, and if we did follow regular order, do the budget, do the appropriation bills the way they're supposed to be done, we wouldn't find ourselves in this situation.

I would ask any who want to keep the government shut, tell us what parts of the government you want to keep shut.

I think we have to acknowledge that there are--when you come up here and talk about funding deficiencies for specific agencies and programs, there are bills that have come over here that would fund many of those agencies and many of those…

I would rather have people back at work, particularly in some of these essential areas.

What I really think is a hijacking effort by the Tea Party folks.

I think that's an overwhelming sickness that has to be eliminated.