Casten Statement on Continuing Resolution to Fund the Government
“After months of working to avoid a government shutdown and prevent House Republicans from enacting extreme spending cuts to vital programs, I’m relieved to have joined House Democrats in passing a continuing resolution that accomplishes that goal and keeps the government funded at current levels for 45 days.
“A shutdown would have had a disastrous impact on Illinois. Over 28,000 troops in our state would have been forced to serve without pay. 167,903 Illinois women and children would have lost access to nutrition assistance benefits. Travelers would have seen delays at airports and food safety inspections would have stopped.
“Thankfully, House Democrats were able to force Speaker McCarthy to leave the far-right extremists in his party behind and work towards a bipartisan solution to avert a shutdown, provide critical disaster relief, and keep the government open.
“That said, the bill we passed today is not a permanent solution, but rather a 45-day reprieve that will allow us to keep working to pass legislation to fully address the needs of the American people and our allies. I am committed to fighting for additional funding to support Ukraine in their defense of democracy and urge my colleagues across the aisle to join us in this work.”
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