Haridopolos: Democrats agreed to funding deal, switched up, now blaming GOP for shutdown

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – U.S. Congressman Mike Haridopolos said Democrats are misleading the public by framing the current government shutdown as a Republican failure, arguing that negotiations had already taken place and Democrats previously agreed to the funding terms they now reject.

Speaking on Florida’s Voice Radio with Drew Steele, Haridopolos said despite Democratic narratives that they “just want to negotiate” is false.

“The misnomers that are out there — I’m not sure if people caught on yet — but Democrats keep on saying, ‘negotiate with us,’” Haridopolos said. “The truth is … we went to the Democrats a long time ago and said, look, we’re probably going to do a CR — a continuing resolution — to keep the government open.”

Haridopolos said House Appropriations Chair Tom Cole confirmed that Republicans had offered a clean CR with no additional policy riders, extending government funding into January. Democrats, he said, had agreed to both the clean resolution and an adjusted timeline that would last until Nov. 21.

“Here they come back and say, ‘You never talked to us,’” Haridopolos said. “Well, we didn’t think we had to talk to you about a CR when you did it 13 times. Yet we did it anyway.”

Haridopolos criticized Democrats for using the shutdown to push for expanded government benefits like free health care for illegal aliens.

“When they call this the Republican shutdown or say it’s the Republican health care plan that’s been a failure and why we have to subsidize it — once again, these people are shameless,” he said.