Denny Heck's Statement on Federal Government Shutdown

Today the national unemployment rate is still unacceptably high, including in the South Puget Sound. Congress should be working to bring that rate down. Instead, a small minority of Congress has chosen to force a government shut down on the American people, making the problem even worse.

Thousands of federal employees at Joint Base Lewis-McChord will be furloughed today. Small businesses throughout the South Puget Sound will see delays in payments and loans from the federal government. Both Mount Rainier National Park and the Nisqually National Wildlife Refuge will be closed. Every day our government is shutdown is another body blow to our economy.

Let me be clear: I am strongly opposed to a government shutdown and strongly support passing a clean funding bill. I support governing responsibly like adults and solving our nation’s problems through the normal democratic process. That’s not what’s happening right now. 

No one wins when our politics devolve to the point of a government shutdown. It’s time for Republicans to come together with Democrats and pass a clean funding bill that keeps the federal government open. Our job is to run the government, not to shut it down.

My office will remain open to assist furloughed federal employees and others affected by the shutdown.