FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
January 25, 2019
CONTACT
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Juan Gastelum, 213-375-3149
Hayley Burgess, 202-805-0375
President Trump Accepts Short-Term Bill to Reopen Government Without Border Wall Funding
WASHINGTON — More than one month into a White House–driven government shutdown — by far the longest in U.S. history — President Trump announced today that he would finally agree to a bill to temporarily reopen the government and pay government workers. This temporary agreement between the White House and congressional leaders will finally reopen the government for three more weeks while Trump continues his exploitative demands for a racist border wall.
Avideh Moussavian, legislative director of the National Immigration Law Center, issued the following statement:
“Careening from crisis to crisis is no way for our leaders to govern. We already waste tens of billions of dollars detaining and deporting immigrant families. We don’t need more money for Trump’s vanity projects or to address fictional scare tactics dreamed up by Stephen Miller.
“The major damage — to federal workers, our economy, access to essential services, and our nation’s stability — of the Trump-inflicted shutdown is temporarily over. In today’s announcement, Trump repeated his ultimatum to invoke a legally dubious ‘national emergency’ to build a wall, making it clear that Trump continues to prioritize threats over good-faith negotiations and that he does not value the well-being of federal workers or those who rely on their service. Trump hasn’t opened a negotiation process, he’s perpetuated a hostage situation.
“It has been clear from day one that Trump is committed to inflicting harm on immigrant communities, and this past month he showed the country just how far he’s willing to go to get what he wants. Elected leaders in Congress must stand up to and stop enabling these fear-mongering and dangerous tactics. Our legislative branch has the power of the purse, not Trump. We call on Congress to look at what’s in the best interest of the nation, rather than looking to appease the political whims of the White House. And we remind our members of Congress and our communities that when we remain committed to our values, we are stronger.”
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