Jan 8, 2019 - Politics & Policy

3 Republican senators want to reopen government without a border deal

Haley Britzky

Sens. Lisa Murkowski, Cory Gardner, and Susan Collins. Photos: Getty Images

Sens. Lisa Murkowski (R-Ala.), Susan Collins (R-Maine), and Cory Gardner (R-Colo.) have called for the government to be reopened before more work is done on border security.

Why it matters: It's getting harder for lawmakers to ignore the real consequences of a shutdown. Democrats in the House have passed a spending bill that would fund a majority of the shuttered government agencies besides the Department of Homeland Security, but President Trump has promised a veto. The Senate can override a veto with 67 votes, but Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has said he won't bring any vote that doesn't have Trump's approval.

Murkowski: "We don't need to hold up these six other departments at the same time that we are resolving these very important security issues."
Collins: "I'm not saying their whole plan is a valid plan, but I see no reason why the bills that are ready to go and on which we've achieved an agreement should be held hostage to this debate over border security."
Gardner: "I think we should pass a continuing resolution to get the government back open. The Senate has done it last Congress, we should do it again today."

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3 Republican senators want to reopen government without a border deal

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