Tina Smith: “today and for the last 19 days, men and women across the country are being hurt by a government shutdown that President…”

“today and for the last 19 days, men and women across the country are being hurt by a government shutdown that President Trump said he was proud to cause for the wall. I rise today on behalf of Minnesotans, on behalf of more than 4,790 hard-working Federal employees and low-wage contractors going without pay in Minnesota right now, and I rise today on behalf of the taxpayers of our country who just want the government to work for them. Since I became a Senator, just a little over a year ago, the government has been closed three times over the President's obsession with building an expensive, ineffective wall on our southern border. I am all for border security, but we need to focus on real solutions, not symbols. So let us start with the facts. In my home State of Minnesota, the Federal Government employs about 32,000 people as food safety inspectors, prison guards, postal workers, and more. Of this total number, the Center for American Progress estimates that 4,790 people are impacted by the shutdown today in Minnesota and are furloughed or working without pay. Over 750 of these workers have already filed for unemployment benefits, and hundreds more are being forced to make tough decisions about how to cover basic expenses, feed their children, and take care of their families. A couple of days ago, I asked Minnesotans how they are being hurt by this shutdown because I wanted to understand how this is affecting people in their everyday lives.…”