WASHINGTON (Nexstar) — The Biden Administration and Democrats say a looming government shutdown will hurt military members and military readiness. But Republicans say it can all be avoided — if Congress dedicates more money to the border.
Rep. Joe Courtney, a Democrat from Connecticut, said a government shutdown will force military members to go without a paycheck.
“This is a disaster for the American people and for our standing in the world,” Courtney said. “There is a hardship for people who are wearing the uniform, many of them go literally from paycheck to paycheck.”
Pentagon Deputy Press Secretary Sabrina Singh said the missed paychecks could hurt military readiness.
“What’s not being shut down is rent, mortgages, childcare,” Singh said. “Morale is a huge issue when you’re talking about our service members not getting paid. I mean just imagine you being asked to come into work every single day, not getting paid and not knowing when that period will end.”
But the road to avoiding a government shutdown is unclear. The Senate is considering a short term funding bill that excludes additional Ukraine funding in an effort to get Republicans on board.
But GOP members like Rep. Dan Mueser of Pennsylvania said he would not vote for that and that Republicans should stick to their own plan.
“That calls for border security and as much as an 8% cut in about half of the discretionary spending,” Mueser said.
House Speaker Kevin McCarthy said there is a way to fix this.
“If the president was willing to spend part of his plans along this border, we could fund this government going forward.”
But that plan is not likely to pass in the Democrat-controlled Senate.