Tom Cole: “I would much prefer--I would never presume to draw you, Commissioner, into a discussion on what I think needs to happen…”

Our conference refuses to let the obstruction and inaction of Senate Democrats trigger another manufactured shutdown at the end of September. That is why we are acting before a funding lapse crisis, not in response to it.

It reinforces support for key allies - like Israel and Taiwan - and directly counters threats from Communist China and other regimes that challenge our interests and principles.

We want to take away the possibility of a shutdown between now and the election.

We're going to be in a crunch time.