Congressman Sherman: "Government Shutdown Averted"

Washington, D.C. -- On December 20th, Congressman Brad Sherman (CA-32) issued the following statement after the House passed a funding bill just hours before the current federal funding deadline:

The good news is that the government will not shutdown.

Yesterday, I sent out a description of what would happen in the event of a government shutdown. In a last-minute compromise that received a large bipartisan majority, I voted to keep the government open and a short-term funding bill has passed the House. While this bill must now pass the Senate, I expect that bill to pass soon and for no delay in government services to affect my constituents.

The bad news is that we had the opportunity to pass over a dozen pieces of important legislation that both Republicans and Democrats agreed to, but these were stripped from the spending bill for purely political reasons. These provisions had been in the Tuesday version of the bill – but were removed at the insistence of Trump and Musk.

Donald Trump and Elon Musk killed the bipartisan compromise spending bill, which would have included:

•    Funding for pediatric cancer research
•    Reforms to pharmacy benefit managers to lower prescription drug prices
•    Reauthorization of Meals on Wheels nutrition assistance for seniors
•    Treatment for pregnant and postpartum women
•    Improving and simplifying access to veterans’ benefits
•    Banning hidden fees in concert and event ticket sales
•    Sanctioning Haitian crime lords
•    Restrictions on Americans investing in high-tech companies in China

It is possible that Elon Musk demanded the removal of more than a dozen provisions to conceal his real objective, the removal of one provision that restricted American investment in high-tech enterprises in China.

In any case, the bill which we passed, will keep the government open until mid-March.

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