AFT President Randi Weingarten on Government Shutdown

WASHINGTON—Statement of AFT President Randi Weingarten on the government shutdown:

“Nobody wins in a shutdown, but this was completely avoidable if President Trump and the Republicans were committed to finding a solution. Even though 80 percent of the American people support protecting Dreamers, and even though the votes are there for a solution to fund the government and the military, keep Dreamers from being deported, and invest in the Children's Health Insurance Program, Trump and Republican leaders purposefully torpedoed any chance of a deal by refusing to act in good faith with Democrats and the few Republicans who were actually interested in solving problems and governing. There has never been a shutdown in modern history when one party controls the entire government, but the Trump government just forced that to happen. Sen. Chuck Schumer and the Democrats, and the Republicans who joined them, deserve a lot of credit for standing up and saying it’s time for action, and refusing to kick the can down the road yet again. Trump says he’s a leader and a dealmaker—now he needs to come to the table and negotiate a workable solution to move forward.”