Dear Friend,
There is a lot of uncertainty surrounding the budget debate in Washington today; however, one thing I strongly believe, and voted for yesterday, is that our men and women in uniform serving in Afghanistan, Iraq, and around the world should be paid even if we are forced into a government shutdown. The President does not share my concerns.
Yesterday, the White House threatened to veto legislation passed by House Republicans to fund our troops for the remainder of the year, cut spending, and prevent a government shutdown. Why? Good question. In its Statement of Administration Policy, the White House does not cite a single policy to justify the veto. I wanted to pass along the following information from Speaker Boehner's office to keep you all informed:
Why Would the White House Threaten to Veto a Responsible Troop Funding Bill? To Shut Down the Government
The White House has threatened to veto responsible legislation passed by House Republicans to fund our troops for the remainder of the year, cut spending, and prevent a government shutdown. Why? Good question. In its Statement of Administration Policy, the White House doesn't cite a single policy to justify the veto. Read it for yourself here.
The fact is, this partisan veto threat of non-controversial legislation by the Administration only has one practical purpose: to shut down the government. Remember these key facts:
-The troop funding bill passed by the House reflects a bipartisan, bicameral agreement reached last December – when Democrats still controlled both houses of Congress – for funding the Department of Defense. There's nothing in the bill that won't largely be encompassed in a final package because, again, neither the Administration nor Senate Democrats have raised a single policy objection. The only plausible reason for Senate Democrats to refuse to pass it, or for the president to refuse to sign it, is if they intend to shut down the government.
-The Democrats who run Washington have been rooting for a government shutdown. The former chairman of the DNC and "a de facto head of his party's left wing" told National Journal that Democrats should be "quietly rooting" for a government shutdown. And they've listened. Aides to Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) called a shutdown "more likely than not." According to the Washington Post, the White House referred to the troop funding bill as a "distraction" – but funding our troops and preventing a government shutdown is not a distraction... unless their goal is to shut down the government.
-House Republicans have made every effort possible to fund the government while making the spending cuts needed to create new jobs. It's been 48 days since the House passed H.R. 1. In that time, Senate Democrats have failed to pass a single bill that funds the government for the rest of the year or offer a credible plan for cutting spending. They simply haven't done their job. And this failure goes all the way back to last year when they didn't even propose a budget. The House-passed troop funding bill is the only bill out right now that would prevent a shut down.
In response to the veto threat, Speaker Boehner reiterated that "Republicans' goal is to cut spending to help create a better environment for job creation – not to shut down the government." He called on "Democrats who believe it is important to fund our troops and make real spending cuts" to "prevail upon Senator Reid and our Commander-in-Chief to keep the government from shutting down."
The American people want Washington to stop the spending binge that is hurting our economy and threatening job growth without shutting down the government – and that's exactly what Republicans are working to do.
I hope this information is helpful. As always, please feel free to contact our offices in Fresno, Modesto or D.C. with any questions you may have.
Sincerely,
JEFF DENHAM
United States Representative
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