With the flexbility necessary to address Senate Democrats in action while they continue funding the United States government and the important instruments of government. Mr. Speaker, last evening, senator Chuck Schumer from new york and Senate Democrats made what i consider to be a reprehensible decision to allow the United States government to shut down. By voting against the bill that funds our military and the pay of the men and women in uniform they voted against a bill that would extend Childrens Health care for six years. Not because they opposed anything in the bill, because youd be hardpressed pob opposed to anything that was in this legislation. They voted against the bill to manufacture a crisis in a purely political move based upon an unrelated issue that is not facing an imminent deadline. Id like to thank the five Senate Democrats and six House Democrats who voted with republicans to keep the government open. Led or schumer should have the rest of his democrats and encouraged them to do what he did back in 2013 when he said, we, i say the democrats, could say were shutting down the government. Were not. Were going to raise the deficit ceiling until you pass immigration reform, it just would be be wong to not do the right thing and open up the government. Yet these wise words, needed more than ever now, this is just a political game. As President Trump said last evening, Senate Democrats own this. It is a schumer shut down. They put politics above national ecurity. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman from colorado will tate his point of order. Is the gentleman from colorado demanding that the gentlemans ords from texas be taken down . The gentleman from texas will be seated. The clerk will report the words. The house gaveled in to begin deliberation on a rule to allow them to take up a continuing resolution any time between now and monday, january 29. Pete sessions of the rules Committee Chair had just started his opening comments on that when there was a delay or the in the action with congressman from colorado ask his words be taken down. Chad program from fox watching from the gallery said screeching halt from the house floor, the democratic senator said the words uttered by the g. O. P. Representative sessions be taken down. This means that sessions language may have violated house rules or impugned another lawmaker. The vote could come if the words are ruled out of order. What is happening now is the clerks are transcribing the words that just were uttered or read on the floor and theyre going to read them back. The chair will rule on the fitness of the words and rule on the request by congressman promutter that the words be taken down. The speaker pro tempore for what purpose does the gentleman from colorad for what purpose does the gentleman from colorado seek recognition . To withdraw my request that the gentleman from texas words be taken down. Words being taken the speaker pro tempore the demand for the words of the the gentleman from texas be withdrawn . The demand is withdrawn. Without objection. The gentleman from texas is recognized. Mr. Sessions mr. Speaker, i thank you very much. I think republicans are on the floor of the house today to make sure that what were attempting ffer to the american the speaker pro tempore members, would you clear the aisles and remove conversations from the floor. The gentleman from texas is recognized. Mr. Sessions mr. Speaker, things are sensitive on both sides. The governments shut down. Republicans are going to offer today advice to the American People about where we stand about getting us back to where we not only open up the government but doing it in a way that is favorable to not only the American People but to the people who protect this great country including children of this country that need health care that republicans attempted to pass in the house and senate. I resmb. The speaker pro tempore the gentlelady from new york. Ms. Slaughter thank you, mr. Speaker, and i thank you for yielding me the customary 0 minutes and i yield myself such time as i may consume. Today is oneyear anniversary of a complete control of washington. The republicans run the house of representatives and white house and senate. A tax bill for corporations and the wealthy and now the great government of the United States is closed for business. The impacts will be severe. Just look what happened during the last republican shutdown in 2013, which cost our economy an estimated 24 billion. We lost progress on reducing the massive backlog of veterans and disability claims. 2 3 of the centers for Disease Control and threefourths of the National Institutes of health were furloughed. Flu season surveillance and monitoring is severely limited and we are in a crisis this year with flu where more than 20 children have died. The food safety inspections were delayed and 1. 2 million private sector loans were disrupted, billions in tax refunds were delayed. Head Start Centers stopped rving 3,300 children and 120,000 private sector jobs were destroyed. The republicans are handing out to the wealthy and corporations. We failed to renew before they expired, the Community Health centers, failt to renew the Childrens Health insurance ogram, which c. B. O. The Congressional Budget Office had found would save the federal government 6 billion despite the fact that the majority made the tax cuts for corporations permanent. That was a tax bill that was sold as a middle class tax cut. We know its a tax cut for big corporations and superwealthy and it seems designed to target blue states. I live in one. These items shouldnt be an extraordinary exercise. Republicans and democrats agree we need to address them. But the majority has been missing in action and we have been forced to limp along funding the government. That is no way to run a business and certainly no way to run the government of the United States of america. President trump tweeted last night and i quote, our country needs a good shutdown. In 2011, years before he assumed office, President Trump said during an interview as another republican shutdown loomed, he said i think it would be a negative mark on the president of the United States. He is the one that has to get people together, end quote. So we would like to have him do that and play that role now. The president should not treat this as a reality show and stop treating government where truth is easily discarded. The majoritys shortterm c. R. Failed in the other body because it didnt get the job done. It was written behind closed doors without a single bit of input from the minority party. Members of to the own majority conference voted against it on both sides of the capitol. If i were in the majoritys shoes with 51 seats and i had to get 60 votes, i would want dim cats to be in on it with me. And to do it, we have to do it in all steps. Majority is quick to invoke the name of my state senator, and will not cross my lips because of what we went through, but that senator from the state of new york earned perfect scores on his s. A. T. s and heard on n. P. R. On two different subjects andion anyone could say he misunderstood what the president said during a meeting or he would was leaving the meeting confounded or confused. They were apparently close to avert the shutdown. The problem is that this president thinks one thing at 10 00 a. M. And another thing at 12 p. M. Even the Senate Majority leader from my other home state, ntucky said, im looking for something that President Trump supports and he has not yet indicated what measure he is willing to sign, end quote. So, majority in both chambers should try something new for a change. We call it bipartisanship. Im here today ready to craft a compromise and face the needs of the American People and my democratic colleagues. I say this with all my heart, work with us for the good of this country. Let us end this shutdown before monday. And i reserve the balance of my time. The speaker pro tempore the gentlelady reserves. The gentleman from texas. Mr. Sessions i appreciate the gentlewoman for her comments. I yield five minutes to the distinguished chairman of the Armed Services committee, the gentleman from texas, mr. Thornberry. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman is recognized for five minutes. Mr. Thornberry mr. Speaker, i appreciate the chairman yielding and rise in support of this rule which will help give the house the flexibility it needs to deal to respond appropriately to whatever the senate may be able to pass. I think its important to remind everyone that the house has done our work. We passed every one of the appropriation bills before the fiscal year began in october. And on thursday, we passed a bill to continue government funding until february 16. Now were waiting to see what the senate may be able to pass and this rule enables us to respond to that. I want to focus my comments on the febts that this budget drama is having on the United States military. Mr. Speaker, the first job of the federal government is to defend the country. We have to do that before we do anything else. There are more than two million men and women who have volunteered to risk their lives to help keep us safe. Some of them are on station this very minute all around the world. Every single one of them and their families depend upon us for the support they need to do the job that the country has asked them to do. As a matter of fact, the constitution is very explicit saying its Congress Responsibility to provide support and maintain the vital military forces of this nation. At this moment, those men and women wherever they are around the world doing their job are not getting paid. Now theyll still do their job, but now they have an additional concern to worry them. There are other consequences. All of the civilians who work at the department of defense are also not getting paid on monday half of them will be told not to come to work. The work on weapons maintenance activities largely will be stopped. New contracts for support and other activities will not be allowed to proceed. Any medical procedures at military Treatment Facilities will not take place. And the pentagon will not be able to pay any of its bills, whether that is money that is owed to a family who has lost a loved one in the line of duty or whether its paying a doctor to take care of a service member. And it is absolutely true that every day we force the military to live under a continuing resolution does damage to the military. The damage being done now under the shutdown is far worse. Truthfully, we have not fulfilled our responsibility to the troops or constitution for some time. As the world grew more dangerous over the last eight year well, cut military budget about 20 . No other portion of the federal budget new york other significant portion, at least, of the federal budget, has undergone those kinds of cuts. And now we do this. Mr. Speaker, theres an even more disturbing problem here. Too many people want to use our constitutional duty to the troops as leverage for some other issue. Most everybody on both sides of the capitol agree we need to spend more on defense. Thats reflected in the votes we have had on defense issues over the past year. But some have now made actually spending that money that the troops needs conditional. On getting their way on some other extraneous, unrelated issue. Mr. Speaker, i suggest we ought to support the military funding on its own merits and not tie toyota any other issue and then we can look at those other issues on their own merits too. Using support for our military as a hostage to try to get political advantage on some other issue really on any other issue is wrong and it ought to stop. We need to set our troops free from this political drama. The time to do that is now. I yield back. The speaker pro tempore the gentlelady from new york. Ms. Slaughter i yield three weeks three minutes to the gentleman from massachusetts a distinguished member of the rule committees, mr. Mcgovern. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman is recognized for three minutes. Mr. Mcgovern this is day one of the trump shutdown. What a sad day it is for this institution and what an incredibly sad day it is for our country this republicancontrolled government is incompetent. It takes my breath away. You control the house, the senate, the white house and this is what we get . One continuing resolution after another and now a trump shutdown . You should be fired. This is so incredibly wrong. You say you want democrats to support your spending bill, yet you wont work with us. You wont talk to us. Negotiating bills in back rooms with only republicans is not how you get a bipartisan vote. This my way or the highway approach undermine ours democracy and results in lousy bills that do not serve the interests of the American People. The Republican Leadership promised regular order. They promised to respect the views of everybody including the views of the minority. And they promised a more open process. That has turned out to be a big, fat lie. I hear from my republican friends they care about the dreamers. And we all know that if the dream act was brought before this house it would pass with a bipartisan vote. But the Republican Leadership around here is so pathetically rrified by the most hateful, xenophobic and bigoted elements of their base they wont put a bill on the floor. I would have thought the thing that got them out of bed in the morning, the tax cuts for Hedge Fund Managers and the wealthy, theyd be willing to work on other things. We need a fix for chip but we need to fund Community Health centers, medical research and veterans health. We need funds to deal with the on yat crisis. We need to support our men and women in the Armed Services and we desperately need to invest in our aging insfra structure. What we dont need are more and more shortterm c. R. s that fail to address the urgent needs of this country. My colleague, today, millions of american, led by fed up women, are marching in cities and towns across the country and they have a message. They dont like the way youre governing and theyre not going to take it anymore. To my republican friends, ask yourselves if you want to keep following trump and the most extreme element in your party off a political clip cliff because thats where theyre taking you. If you keep following them, history wont be kind. Stop the nonsense, stop the obstructionism, do your job and work with democrats for the good of our country. The American People are watching. I yield back my time. The speaker pro tempore members are advised to direct their comments to the chair. Direct your comments to the chair. The gentleman from texas. Mr. Sessions mr. Speaker, thank you very much. There was a question about the president , the president doesnt vote in the house or senate. Those people who vote yes were for funding the government. Those that voted no for were were for shut do you think the government. The president of the United States through whats called statement of administrative policy advised the rule committees january 17 he would be signing the bill. The president said he was for the bill. Mr. Speaker, the Armed Services network, Armed Forces Network is operated by the u. S. Armed forces which broadcasts Popular Television programs to the United States government civilians an their families, especially those at bases and overseas including ships at sea. Because of the schumer shutdown, Armed Forces Network services will go off the air. That means that tomorrow, the nfl championship sunday, our Service American all around the globe will be unable to participate in the things we do here in the United States. Yet another example of why a yes vote would have been for the men and women of our military. Mr. Speaker, at this time id like to yield one minute to the distinguished majority leader, mr. Mccarthy. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman is recognized for one minute. Mr. Mccarthy i thank the gentleman for yielding. Mr. Speaker, the nation finds itself in a grave situation. Our government has shut down. Military men and women in afghanistan, in iraq, and around the world, are still risking our lives, their lives, for our country and theyre not being paid. Opioid Treatment Centers have had their funds cut off. Children in states across america will start losing their Health Insurance. How did we get to this place . The nation assume there is must be a good reason. The house passed a bill. A clean government funding bill with no Strings Attached and no gimmicks. Because states are running out of money. We even included funding for a bipartisan extension of the Childrens HealthInsurance Program for six years without any offset or democrat our democrat colleagues have objected to in the past. The longest the chip program has ever been reauthorized for. So we passed that bill and it went to the senate. We all know the rules. Mr. Speaker, at times, it sounds like some people need a litt