Political Quotes

“I am on the floor to talk about a problem that is far too common here in Washington; that is, Federal Government shutdowns. They don't make any sense. If we don't do something in 12 days, Congress, once again, will face an unnecessary and costly government shutdown. We have to avoid that. I have been through five different government shutdowns since my time working in the George H. W. Bush White House back in 1990, and three shutdowns just over the last 5 years. None of them worked. I don't know anyone who likes them now because we found out that when you shut down the government, taxpayers actually pay more, not less. It might seem like if you shut down the government, that is good for taxpayers, but it is actually bad for taxpayers. They foot the bill for the backpay of Federal workers for the days they weren't allowed to go to work, and they pay for other things, too, that they wouldn't have to pay for if Congress did its job, got its spending bills done, and didn't shut down the government. Delayed projects, late payment fees, lost productivity, deferred maintenance--it all adds up. Shutdowns also disrupt government services, of course. By the way, it is not just the poor government programs and services at the time--that continues.…”