McConnell Again Blocks Bill To Reopen Government

January 17, 2019 News, Politics

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) blocked legislation on Thursday that would have reopened most of the federal government impacted by the partial shutdown.

Sen. Tim Kaine (D-Va.) tried to get consent to take up a House-passed bill that would reopen all agencies except the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), which is at the center of the shutdown fight. But McConnell objected.

It’s marks the third time that McConnell has blocked House-passed government funding bills in the past two weeks. Roughly a quarter of the government has been shut down since Dec. 22, forcing roughly 800,000 federal employees to work without pay or be furloughed.

Day 27: I just directly requested passage of a bill to reopen the government. Senator McConnell refused.

Impossible to overstate exactly how ridiculous and offensive — not to mention unnecessary — this continuing shutdown is.

— Tim Kaine (@timkaine) January 17, 2019