Tom Cole: “I just think it is really important to do what your tribe has done, and you have to be well situated.”

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.

The only reason we’re doing it now is, first, the Senate Democrats, I think, have misused the filibuster, and honestly, the Republicans have let them misuse the filibuster.

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

For anyone questioning this legislation, the facts are simple — it extends the government funding deadline to Dec. 4, denying any party the opportunity to manufacture leverage before elections.