On the recordJanuary 21, 2018
as you can see here, a lot of the Senators are coming down to talk about the government shutdown. We are in a completely avoidable shutdown. There are a lot of speeches, but I think it is important to be clear on one fact. The position of the Democratic leadership on Friday night was this: Unless you agree with our demands on the DACA issue by midnight, we will shut down the Federal Government. I don't think anybody disagrees that is what the position was Friday night. The irony, of course, is there wasn't even a bill to agree on, but that still was their position. The decision was in their hands and they made it and here we are. This was completely avoidable, and we need to get this government of ours up and running again. I have been coming to the floor for the last few days--on the eve of the shutdown and each day during the shutdown--to emphasize one point; that the American people need to be skeptical. They need to be very skeptical as the Members of the Senate Democratic leadership and some of their colleagues trot out newly polished talking points emphasizing their concern for the military readiness, rebuilding our forces, and more spending on defense. You might be hearing this. As a matter of fact, I have heard that argument from the leadership on the other side more in the last 3 days than I have heard in the last 3 years as a Senator in this body.…
