Garamendi Calls on Speaker McCarthy to Prevent Government Shutdown

WASHINGTON, DC – Today, Congressman John Garamendi issued the following statement on the impending government shutdown:

“Time and time again, Congressional Democrats and President Biden have made it clear that they are more than willing to work across the aisle for the good of the American people to keep the federal government open. Unfortunately, Speaker McCarthy has put Republican political infighting over the interests of our country and the continuity of essential services to millions of American citizens.

MAGA Republicans are taking our government hostage with their outrageous demands, including stripping funding for clean energy, health care for women and LGBTQ+ servicemembers, and critical food assistance for our neediest Americans.

In California alone, over 200,000 active duty and reserve personnel serving in our nation’s armed forces would be forced to work without pay and over 900,000 people will lose access to federal benefits for food, formula, and diapers for women, infants, and children. In my district, over 26,000 active duty, reservists, and civilian employees assigned to Travis Air Force Base will be forced to go without pay and, while social security checks will be unaffected, the over 130,000 recipients of social security benefits and those looking to apply may experience delays.

It is time for House Republicans to stop playing political games and work with Democrats to fund the services millions of families rely on. I call on Speaker McCarthy to put the country over partisanship to avoid a government shutdown.

We must keep essential services available to working families that depend upon them. Speaker McCarthy is failing every Californian, including those in his congressional district. There is simply no more time to waste.”

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