January 8, 2019 - Issue: Vol. 165, No. 3 — Daily Edition116th Congress (2019 - 2020) - 1st Session

[Pages H231-H232]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




    REAL-LIFE STORIES OF MY CONSTITUENTS AFFECTED BY THE GOVERNMENT 
                                SHUTDOWN

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from 
Connecticut (Mr. Courtney) for 5 minutes.
  Mr. COURTNEY. Mr. Speaker, I rise today, a really sad milestone of, 
really, failure on day 18 of a partial government shutdown that is 
affecting 25 percent of the Federal Government.
  I am rising today to share some of the real-life stories of some of 
my constituents in eastern Connecticut who are affected by this 
shutdown, which, again, today, we are now officially 1 day past the 
length of the 2013 shutdown of 17 days. On Sunday, if this is not fixed 
and ended, it will actually be the longest shutdown in American 
history, surpassing the 1994 shutdown.
  Mr. Speaker, today, I got a letter from James of Waterford, 
Connecticut:

       I am a State Department employee assigned to the U.S. 
     Embassy in Kabul, Afghanistan. I have been a DOS employee 
     since 2003.
       I live and work every day in a dangerous environment in 
     support of U.S. foreign policy. In Herat, Afghanistan, in 
     2013, I was shot at and blown up in an attack by the Taliban 
     on the U.S. Consulate. In Belgrade, Serbia, in 2008, I was 
     trapped in the burning U.S. Embassy during protests 
     against Kosovo independence while I protected and 
     destroyed classified information.
       I support our government's policies in difficult 
     environments, and I expect my government to meet their 
     commitment to me and my family.

  Jeremy of Colchester, Connecticut, who works for the Coast Guard:

       Please work to pass a bill to fund the government, 
     including employees' salaries of the Coast Guard, which are, 
     again, part of the Department of Homeland Security. My

[[Page H232]]

     family cannot go indefinitely without pay, nor should they 
     have to.

  And he is absolutely right.
  Kate of Chester, Connecticut:

       I am a U.S. Department of Agriculture employee. I have been 
     an employee of the USDA for 15 years at the Plum Island 
     Animal Disease Center.

  That is off the coast of Long Island Sound, where they do amazing 
research in terms of animal health and public health.

       If there is not a resolution and end to this shutdown soon, 
     my financial situation will force me to choose which bills to 
     pay.

  Robert of Stafford Springs, Connecticut, who actually works for a 
regional craft brewery:

       I depend on the ATF, the Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms, to 
     approve license applications, formulas and labels for beers--
     delicious beers, by the way--that we brew and sell. Every day 
     that this passes without a shutdown ending is another 
     potential day of lost sales.

  Ethan of Niantic, Connecticut, who works at the Coast Guard Academy, 
where they are building the leaders of tomorrow for this country. He 
has been part of the faculty for the last 11 years.

       Personally, without earning a paycheck, we will find paying 
     for groceries, mortgage, utilities, childcare, and other 
     essentials, nearly impossible. As the government shutdown 
     lingers on, I become increasingly concerned how it will 
     impact my family.

  Brian Krampovitas, I met with him this morning in my office. He is 
one of the air traffic controllers at Bradley Field in Hartford, 
Connecticut. They have 40 employees who are working without pay, 10-
hour shifts, making sure that the planes take off and land safely. And 
again, the stress level, because they have no support staff, is growing 
more and more intense for people who are doing incredibly important 
work, guaranteeing the safety of this country.
  Again, just as a way of a recap, last week the new Congress was sworn 
in. Within 2 hours, we passed H.R. 21, which fully funded the American 
Government, which would have ended this shutdown last week, again, not 
with a wild spending bill but one that had already passed in the U.S. 
Senate with Republican votes.
  All Mitch McConnell has to do is bring up that bill, which they have 
already passed, send it to the President, and with the stroke of a pen, 
this would end today; and these people who, again, are doing the 
important work of the American people would not have to be going 
through the stress and aggravation while they are doing great work to 
protect our public safety, to represent our country overseas, and to 
make sure that we have leaders of the future through institutions like 
the Coast Guard Academy.
  Again, we are going to hear a speech tonight. This thing apparently 
is going to continue to go on. It is unnecessary, it is pointless, and 
it is hurting the American economy and the American people.
  Mr. President, sign H.R. 21.
  We can have a debate about border security. There are some things 
that both sides will agree on in terms of making sure that we get more 
immigration judges to eliminate the asylum case backlog, to boost 
enforcement of port of entry where fentanyl and dangerous drugs are 
coming through; and we can have a serious debate about whether or not 
it is sensors and drones, boots on the ground to make sure that those 
areas that are more remote get more protection, but lengthening this 
shutdown and hurting people who have absolutely nothing to do with the 
southern border is pointless and hurting people and hurting the U.S. 
economy.

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