On the recordJanuary 10, 2019
I join with my colleagues in supporting House passage today of the long overdue FY 2019 Department of Agriculture, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies funding bill which will help bring an end to the reckless shutdown for the agencies, programs, and federal employees that are covered by this measure. We need to pass this bill today, and the Senate needs to follow suit, to help stave off some of the worst consequences that face some of the most vulnerable as a result of the President's reckless decision. If the partial government shutdown, which the President is so proud to have caused, continues there may not be sufficient appropriations for food assistance under the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) to provide full benefits or any benefits. USDA recently announced it was making moves to try and delay the inevitable for these programs. But that is just a stall--one of the many desperate actions by an Administration apparently just now starting to realize the damage it is inflicting across America. To make his case, the President held a national press conference earlier this week to sell his made up ``crisis'' along the Southern border. A ``crisis'' that experts say is not happening. Border apprehensions are at lows not seen in nearly two decades. The ``crisis,'' if any exists, is his policy of denying asylum seekers their legal right to make their claims.…
