Neighbor,

As you know, today is day 17 of the unnecessary and completely avoidable government shutdown. I voted to avoid this situation with a bipartisan continuing resolution (CR) over three weeks ago, but unfortunately, Chuck Schumer and Senate Democrats continue to hold the federal government hostage—playing politics with American lives.

Despite the drastic consequences to federal workers, farmers, veterans, and families in Georgia, our two Senators have voted TEN times to keep the federal government shut down. Here are the receipts:

9/19 – House Republicans voted to keep the government open (passed)
9/19 – House Democrats voted to shut down the government

9/19 – Senate GOP voted to keep the government open
9/19 – Senate Democrats voted to shut down the government

9/30 – Senate GOP voted to keep the government open
9/30 – Senate Democrats voted to shut down the government

10/1 – Senate GOP voted to open the government
10/1 – Senate Democrats voted to keep the government shut down

10/3 – Senate GOP voted to open the government
10/3 – Senate Democrats voted to keep the government shut down

10/6 – Senate GOP voted to open the government
10/6 – Senate Democrats voted to keep the government shut down

10/8 – Senate GOP voted to open the government
10/8 – Senate Democrats voted to keep the government shut down

10/9 – Senate GOP voted to open the government
10/9 – Senate Democrats voted to keep the government shut down

10/14 – Senate GOP voted to open the government
10/14 – Senate Democrats voted to keep the government shut down

10/15 – Senate GOP voted to open the government
10/15 – Senate Democrats voted to keep the government shut down

10/16 – Senate GOP voted to open the government
10/16 – Senate Democrats voted to keep the government shut down

Keep in mind, Democrats supported identical funding extensions in March of this year and 13 times under President Biden.

President Trump took decisive action to help our servicemembers by signing a Presidential Memorandum directing Secretary Hegseth to guarantee active-duty U.S. military personnel receive their paychecks.

However, Democrats are calling the president’s efforts to support military families illegal— fighting the president’s move to pay our troops as THEY keep the government shut down, refusing to vote for the CLEAN, bipartisan funding extension.  

The contrast could not be clearer.

I met with a group of veterans in Evans yesterday to discuss how the government shutdown is impacting their daily lives.

Every day that Hakeem Jeffries and Chuck Schumer waste on refusing to pass the House-passed clean funding bill, the services that veterans and their families rely on are put at risk. Veteran career counseling, GI Bill Hotline, VA benefits regional offices, public affairs outreach, and more are impacted. Critical veterans care and assistance programs are paused. Programs that provide mental health support for thousands of veterans and their families are without funding. Make no mistake about it, Senate Democrats are consistently voting against critical services for our veterans.

In my Augusta district office, I also met with Will Jackson III, the Chief Executive Officer at Christ Community Health Services Augusta. We had a great conversation about Christ Community Health's mission of demonstrating God's love by providing affordable, quality primary healthcare to the underserved.

We also talked about the importance of offering pathways to opportunity and the dignity that comes with gainful employment. I enjoyed hearing about Will's journey and his vision for the future of the organization. Thanks for coming by!

REMINDER: My Offices in Washington, D.C., Augusta, Statesboro, and Dublin remain open: My staff will continue to answer your phone calls, handle constituent correspondence, and process casework. My team and I will not be able to process flag orders or arrange tours of the United States Capitol and other landmarks for constituents visiting Washington, D.C. If you are traveling to D.C. during this time, my office will be open to visitors. Please do not hesitate to reach out if you have any questions or concerns. 

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Sincerely,

Rick Allen
Member of Congress