Rep. Haridopolos: Democrats chose shutdown over common-sense funding

I voted to keep the government open. Unfortunately, Democrats in Congress refused to act, choosing politics over common sense. Now, after more than a week of shutdown, families, workers, and veterans across the country —including many in Florida are paying the price for their obstruction.

Congress is required to pass twelve bills each year to fund the government. When that process isn’t finished on time, it relies on a short-term measure called a Continuing Resolution, or CR, to keep funding at the same levels as the previous year. So, as the deadline approached, a short-term plan was still needed to keep the government open.

Democratic leaders initially said they wanted a short-term CR that kept spending flat and gave Congress time to finish its work. That’s exactly what Republicans proposed: A seven-week extension with no changes to funding. I voted yes to keep the government open, but only one Democrat did the same. The rest voted no, and their decision caused the government shutdown.

The Democrat position is a complete reversal from previous years. Democrats voted for short-term funding bills 13 times under President Biden. Yet now that President Trump is leading the White House, they have decided that the exact same measure is unacceptable. The only thing that changed was who occupies the Oval Office.

Shutting down essential services to make a political point is wrong. Millions of Americans are paying the price for this decision.

Democrats now claim they want to negotiate, but their demands tell a different story. They are asking for $1.5 trillion in new spending and to roll back our reforms that fight waste, fraud, and abuse. They also want to go back to the policies that allowed illegal immigrants to receive taxpayer-funded healthcare.

On top of that, they are insisting on extending COVID-era Obamacare tax subsidies that do not expire until the end of the year. There is no reason to hold up the entire government when we have time to negotiate needed changes to the broken Obamacare system.

Meanwhile, the impact of the shutdown grows. Our troops at this point will not be paid on time. Federal agencies are running with minimal staff. More than 150,000 federal workers in Florida are facing furloughs and delayed paychecks. Americans across the country are being denied services they have already paid for through their taxes.

House Republicans have offered a clear and simple path to end this: Pass the same short-term CR and allow Congress to complete the budget properly. The shutdown would end immediately if Senate Democrats chose to cooperate.

Until then, my office remains open and ready to help anyone impacted in Brevard and Indian River Counties. We have already assisted more than 1,500 Floridians this year and returned over $6.4 million in federal dollars to our community. If you need help with a federal agency, please call 321-632-1776 or visit my website.