Washington — Michigan members of Congress expressed relief Friday that federal employees would return to work after President Donald Trump announced a deal to reopen shuttered…
Washington — Michigan members of Congress expressed relief Friday that federal employees would return to work after President Donald Trump announced a deal to reopen shuttered government departments for three weeks.
After insisting for more than a month on $5.7 billion for a border wall, Trump said he would sign a short-term deal with no wall funding to reopen the government and give lawmakers time to negotiate on border security.
“If we don’t get a fair deal from Congress, the government will either shut down on Feb. 15, again, or I will use the powers afforded to me under the laws and Constitution of the United States to address this emergency, » Trump said at the White House.
Freshman Rep. Andy Levin, D-Bloomfield Township, said « good riddance. »
“The president’s shutdown achieved nothing, but caused a lot of harm to working families, veterans and some of America’s most vulnerable, » Levin said.
“This shutdown should never have happened in the first place, but I’m hopeful that this is finally the end. »
Nationwide, roughly 800,000 federal employees were furloughed or forced to work without pay during the record-setting shutdown.
