Ann Kirkpatrick: “I stand here on behalf of my Arizona district to once again make a simple request: allow a vote on a clean funding bill…”

“I stand here on behalf of my Arizona district to once again make a simple request: allow a vote on a clean funding bill to reopen the government. In the past week, House GOP leaders only allowed piecemeal votes on bills that went nowhere. Yesterday, they did it again. This time, they did it with Head Start funding, which is important for the 12 Native American tribes in my district. Schools on tribal lands have already taken a massive hit with sequestration cuts. The shutdown is continuing this pain, not just with cuts to Head Start and impact aid, but with furloughs from the Indian Health Service and with cuts in funding for programs that protect women from violence. These piecemeal games are a dead end. They only prolong the shutdown. If House leadership were genuinely concerned about programs like Head Start or Impact Aid, they would allow a vote to reopen the government. Congress should stop picking winners and losers. This is not a game. We demand a vote on the budget. ____________________”