Tom Harkin: “here we are in the 18th day of a partial Government shutdown, the longest in our history. The Senator from Alaska just…”

“here we are in the 18th day of a partial Government shutdown, the longest in our history. The Senator from Alaska just said the taxpayers ought to be irate. They should be irate--all taxpayers--because it is not just the more than 700,000 Federal employees who are either working and not getting paid, or are staying home and not getting paid, but who know they will be paid some time in the future who are being affected. The fact is, this shutdown is estimated to cost taxpayers $40 million a day. Mr. President, 18 days, that is $720 million. We are approaching $1 billion that this unnecessary shutdown has cost the taxpayers of this country, and yet those who prolong it fancy themselves as fiscal conservatives. They are willing to throw the taxpayers' money away by shutting down the Federal Government. Senator Daschle, the Democratic leader, has offered time and time again a clean continuing resolution that would continue the Government operations to a date certain. This would put these Federal workers back to work and end the waste, yet that has been turned down time and time and time again by the Republican side. All we've asked is to pass a clean continuing resolution, keep the Government operating to a date certain and we do not care what that date is. We can do it once a week or something similar, but at least get these people back to work and stop the $40 million a day waste of taxpayer money.”