Trump Claims Democrats Are Majority Of Employees Working Without Pay Due To Shutdown
After taking a day off of his favorite social media platform, President Donald Trump returned from his surprise visit to U.S. troops in Iraq early this morning and hopped right back on Twitter, where the Hill reported he resumed his feud with Democrats on Capitol Hill over funding for one of his major campaign promises–a wall along the U.S.-Mexico border.
Around 7 a.m. on Thursday, December 27, the president tweeted that he and his wife, first lady Melania, had returned home from visiting the “incredible people representing our Country” in Iraq, and followed up just minutes later with a tweet wondering if Democrats had realized how “desperately” the United States needed the border wall to stop drugs and criminals, among other things, from entering the country.
He continued his tweet, presumably in an effort to put things into perspective for the party he has continuously blamed for the government shutdown, stating to Democrats that it is in fact members of their own political party that are the majority of federal employees not getting paid as the government enters its sixth day of being partially shut down.
President Trump did not provide any further explanation to his claim and has remained off of Twitter since his quick early morning rant.
Have the Democrats finally realized that we desperately need Border Security and a Wall on the Southern Border. Need to stop Drugs, Human Trafficking,Gang Members & Criminals from coming into our Country. Do the Dems realize that most of the people not getting paid are Democrats?
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) December 27, 2018
And while the president has remained silent on social media since the tweet, other government officials have spoken up over his “outrageous” claim, including Virginia Democratic Senator Mark Warner, who noted on his own Twitter account that federal employees do not show up to work wearing red or blue jerseys to signify which party they’re affiliated with.
“They’re public servants,” Warner wrote. “And the President is treating them like poker chips at one of his failed casinos.”
This is outrageous. Federal employees don’t go to work wearing red or blue jerseys. They’re public servants. And the President is treating them like poker chips at one of his failed casinos. https://t.co/bxkt67E9Bq
— Mark Warner (@MarkWarner) December 27, 2018
The government entered into a partial shutdown at midnight on Saturday, December 22, after Congress was not able to negotiate a government funding bill that also provided the $5.7 billion the president was demanding to fund the building of a border wall.
A bill was initially passed in the Senate that did not provide money for the wall, which was rejected by President Trump after facing pressure from conservative allies.
This was followed up with another bill that did include the president’s requested funds that was passed by the House but was considered “dead on arrival” in the Senate, leading to the government’s current state.
President Trump has spent the days since the shutdown addressing it just about once a day on Twitter, making sure to place blame for it on the Democrats in each tweet as he waits for them to come up with the solution that includes the funding he wants.
