Dear Friend,

President Trump and Republicans in Congress are on track to shut down the federal government tonight (September 30th), at midnight ET. Let me explain how we got here.

Since January, President Trump and Republicans in Congress have eviscerated our government and held onto hundreds of billions of dollars of congressionally-appropriated funds – instead of spending them.

It’s Congress’s job to appropriate funds – or decide how they’re spent (the power of the purse). It’s the Administration’s job to execute that spending. Yet, President Trump has refused to spend billions of dollars on everything from Head Start to disaster relief and foreign assistance to resources for law enforcement. He’s also already tried to illegally fire hundreds of thousands of federal workers this year… many of whom they’ve had to re-hire because their absence hurt critical government functions.

President Trump has also slashed health care spending. He’s kicked millions of people off Medicaid (or what we call Medi-cal), including 1 in 4 San Diegans. And he has failed to extend critical Affordable Care Act tax credits that help lower the cost of health care premiums. 23,000 people in my district alone will pay significantly more for insurance next year if Republicans let these tax credits expire.

That’s why Democrats have our own funding bill to address these issues. Our proposal would:

Reverse Medicaid cuts
Permanently extend the Affordable Care Act premium tax credit
Protect Congress’s power of the purse

So far, Republicans haven’t even considered our proposal. But remember: Republicans control the House, Senate, and the White House. They have a responsibility to come to the negotiating table and talk to us if they want Democratic votes – that’s the whole job. If the government shuts down, the reason is simple: it’s because Republicans are committed to illegally gutting the government and raising your costs.

But we won’t give up. I’m fighting to keep the government open, protect our essential checks and balances, and lower your health care costs.

In the meantime, if you or your family will be affected by this shutdown, I would love to hear from you. Click the button below to share your story with me.