There is a "clear path" to end the ongoing partial government shutdown, and that's to reopen the government and then discuss border wall funding, Sen. Richard Blumenthal said Tuesday.
"Take the bills that passed the House of Representatives that would provide funding, much like the bill that was unanimously approved by the Senate just a month ago, and then, after we reopen the government and resolve differences about border security and dreamers," the Connecticut Democrat told CNN's "New Day."
There are policy differences all the time in the government, Blumenthal said, but "we don't shut down the government to resolve them."
Democrats have strong support for border security through "smart measures" such as surveillance, sensors, electronic fencing, better technology, more and better-trained manpower, and a solution for Dreamers, said Blumenthal.
He also disagreed with reports that House Speaker Nancy Pelosi is refusing to negotiate because she does not want to give President Donald Trump a way to claim credit for a solution to the shutdown.
"The reason we're in this dilemma is that the president has made demands and is simply insisting on a vanity project, a campaign promise or applause line, and no president should be allowed to take the nation hostage to achieve a personal triumph," said Blumenthal.
He also called the president's plan, announced over the weekend, of being a "sham" that applies only to a limited number of people.
"We have a responsibility," said Blumenthal. "The Senate should do its job. We should not just be an extension of the White House, a kind of additional West Wing, and we should make an independent judgment. We're sending the president a measure to reopen the government. That's our job."
Sandy Fitzgerald ✉
Sandy Fitzgerald has more than three decades in journalism and serves as a general assignment writer for Newsmax covering news, media, and politics.
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