[Congressional Record Volume 165, Number 9 (Wednesday, January 16, 2019)]
[House]
[Pages H605-H606]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                           THE TRUMP SHUTDOWN

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentlewoman from 
New York (Ms. Velazquez) for 5 minutes.
  Ms. VELAZQUEZ. Mr. Speaker, as of this week, the Trump shutdown has 
become the longest government shutdown in American history.
  It is bad enough that the President has doubled down on his demand 
for a senseless, expensive, and hateful border wall. It is even worse 
that he is holding Federal workers hostage, needlessly inflicting pain 
and suffering on dedicated public servants.
  Last week, Federal workers began officially missing a paycheck. These 
800,000 workers, both employees and subcontractors, are fathers, 
mothers, brothers, and sisters. They have mouths to feed and mortgages 
to pay. They must put groceries on the table and gasoline in their car. 
Yet because one person in Washington decided to throw a political 
temper tantrum over a foolish wall, many of them are now having to cut 
expenses, endure sacrifices, and make tough choices in their family 
budgets.
  The latest outrageous development occurred when, last week, Donald 
Trump threatened to take disaster funds away from the Army Corps of 
Engineers to pay for this wall. He even suggested taking funding away 
from Puerto Rico as the island struggles to recover from historic 
hurricanes, the aftermath of which cost 3,000 of our fellow citizens 
their lives.
  Think about that. The President wants to take money away from 
Americans who are suffering from natural disasters in Puerto Rico, 
Texas, California, and elsewhere to fund a hateful wall aimed at 
demonizing immigrant communities. This is shameful and it is immoral.
  Now we have gotten word that HUD may be using the shutdown as a 
predicate for reducing disaster funding to

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the people of Puerto Rico. Last week, HUD put out a surprise notice 
claiming that the shutdown is preventing them from proceeding with 
disaster recovery efforts, funds Congress allocated on a bipartisan 
basis almost a year ago. Yet HUD's very own contingency plans dictate 
that shutdowns, under no circumstances, should affect disaster-related 
operations.
  I fear that Secretary Carson is playing politics with the shutdown 
and the people of Puerto Rico, putting the island's recovery at risk.
  Mr. Speaker, this shutdown must end. The President's shameful 
insistence on a border wall is harming our workers and families. 
Everything, from the food we eat to counterterrorism, to travel safety, 
is impacted by the Trump shutdown. And now HUD is threatening to 
inflict greater pain on those who have survived natural disasters. That 
is unacceptable.

  Mr. President, the American people implore you: Stop holding Federal 
workers and other Americans hostage. Stop threatening parts of our 
Nation that are recovering from natural disaster. Don't put people's 
lives at risk. Do your job. Reopen government, and get back to work.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Members are reminded to refrain from 
engaging in personalities toward the President.

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