Bradley Byrne: A senseless shutdown
Since coming to Washington, there have been several times when it felt like I was banging my head against the wall in frustration. One of those times was during the recent, senseless government shutdown. Last Friday at midnight, the entire federal government shutdown after the Senate failed to pass a bill to continue government funding. The bizarre thing was that Democrats did not disagree with a single provision in the bill. Instead, Senate Democrats wanted a provision included in the bill to effectively grant amnesty to individuals in our country illegally under the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program. Now, President a has indicated he wants to see a long-term solution on how to handle those in the DACA program, and Congress has been in negotiations for weeks over a bill to address DACA and other border security issues. Those talks had been productive, but differences remained. The good news was that the deadline to handle DACA is not until mid-March. Sadly, Senate Democrats refused to wait and demanded an illegal immigration provision be passed right away. When they did not get their way, they refused to vote for the funding bill and caused the entire federal government to shut down. Government shutdowns have a lot of dire consequences, especially when it comes to our nation’s military. For example, all active duty military personnel continue to work during a shutdown, but they cannot be paid. Ridiculously, during a shutdown, one of the few people in the federal government who continue to get paid are Members of Congress. I think that is wrong, so I immediately sent a letter to the Chief Administrative Officer of the House requesting that my pay be withheld until the shutdown ended. If our military was not getting paid, I did not think I should get paid either. President Trump made clear that he would not negotiate with Democrats on immigration issues until they ended their silly government shutdown. So, for a while, it seemed Democrats were going to hold the line and keep the federal government shuttered. Things seemed to change over the weekend when news headlines started to show that Democrats were getting the brunt of the blame for the shutdown. Even liberal-leaning national newspapers like the New York Times ran headlines showing that Democrats were the ones who shut down the government. So, on Monday, Senate Democrats agreed to end their senseless shutdown and vote to reopen the government. To be clear, they have absolutely nothing to show for their shutdown. Not a single promise was made in the House regarding a path forward on immigration issues. The shutdown was a total failure and nothing more than an irresponsible political stunt. There was one good piece of news to come out of the whole ordeal. The final funding bill included six years of funding for the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP), which is known as AllKids in Alabama. The program helps provide health insurance to over 150,000 children right here in Alabama, and the funding will help eliminate uncertainty for the families who use the program. I am a huge supporter of CHIP, so I was proud to preside over the House when we voted to reopen the government and provide long-term funding for CHIP. At the end of the day, the government shutdown was just another example of how Washington is broken in so many ways. In the coming weeks, I will continue pushing for a long-term government funding bill that responsibly funds our military, as well as for commonsense immigration policies that punish those who break the law and help keep our borders secure. • • • Bradley Byrne is a member of U.S. Congress representing Alabama’s 1st Congressional District.
Congress approves plan to reopen government after three-day shutdown
Congress has passed a bipartisan stopgap spending bill to reopen the federal government after a three-day partial shutdown. Members of the U.S. House of Representatives voted 266-150 to reopen the government and extend funding through Feb. 8, hours after the Senate voted in favor of the measure, 81-18. The bill also provides money for the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) for six years, including Alabama’s ALLKids program. President Donald Trump is expected to quickly sign the measure to resume government operations, allowing hundreds of thousands of federal workers to resume working on Tuesday. The measure had the support of the entire Alabama delegation, in both chambers. Here’s what Alabama’s Congressional delegation had to say about the shutdown and their votes: U.S. Senate Sen. Richard Shelby: No official statement released. Sen. Doug Jones: The Senate still needs to pass a long-term funding plan that addresses the many critical issues facing our nation, but I’m pleased to announce we were able to rise above partisan politics and find consensus. U.S. House of Representatives Alabama 1st District U.S. Rep. Bradley Byrne: This shutdown was meaningless and petty. Senate Democrats shut down the federal government over illegal immigration, but thankfully they caved after realizing the blame was squarely on their shoulders. To make clear, there was no agreement made in the House about any issues relating to illegal immigration. This #SchumerShutdown accomplished absolutely nothing. I hate that this whole ordeal even occurred, but I am glad the federal government can now return to business. Alabama 2nd District U.S. Rep. Martha Roby: I am pleased to report that Senate Democrats have finally come around and decided to end the #SchumerShutdown. The House just passed a bill to reopen the government. I’m glad it’s over, but it never should’ve happened. Senate Democrats held funding for our military and children’s health insurance hostage over an unrelated immigration issue that doesn’t have an immediate deadline. Alabama 3rd District U.S. Rep. Mike Rogers: No official statement released. Alabama 4th District U.S. Rep. Robert Aderholt: By voting to end their shutdown and allowing the government to reopen, the Senate Democrats folded on what the rest of America knew to be a losing position. I am proud that Speaker Ryan and Leader McCarthy stood firm on our conservative principles and did not reward legislative hostage–taking. Let me be clear, House Members do not feel bound to resolve the differences in DACA and immigration enforcement before the next funding deadline. House leadership has been consistent in their belief that these are two separate issues that will be resolved on two separate legislative tracks. Alabama 5th District U.S. Rep Mo Brooks: No official statement released. Alabama 6th District U.S. Rep Gary Palmer: No official statement released. Alabama 7th District U.S. Rep Terri Sewell: Today’s vote to reopen the government and fund CHIP was an important bipartisan step forward. I am disappointed that it took as long as it did for Republicans to work with Democrats, but I am hopeful that today’s deal lays the groundwork for both parties to address some of our nation’s biggest challenges, from healthcare to immigration to care for our veterans. For Alabama families who depend on ALL Kids, for the men and women in the Armed Forces, for federal health researchers, for Alabama’s hospitals, and for all of my constituents, this legislation is a step towards future cooperation. Today’s agreement is far from perfect. Congress must pass a budget with long-term funding that gives our federal agencies the certainty they need.
Jim Carnes: Congress’ plan to cut Medicaid threatens Alabama’s rural communities
In many small towns across Alabama, the Great Recession of 2008 is still visible in empty storefronts, shrunken paychecks and lives put on hold. Unfortunately, those rural communities will soon be dealt another devastating blow if Congress cuts federal funding for our state’s Medicaid program. Medicaid is a critical lifeline for 24 percent of Alabama’s rural and small-town residents, and the deep cuts to Medicaid being considered right now by Congress would have a harmful and disproportionate impact on our children, seniors and families in need. According to a new independent report by researchers at Georgetown University and the University of North Carolina, a larger share of children and families living in small towns and rural areas rely on Medicaid for their health coverage. This is especially true for children. About 52 percent of children living in non-metro areas of Alabama are covered by Medicaid and ALLKids (known in other states as the Children’s Health Insurance Program, or CHIP), compared to 42 percent in metro areas. Nationally, the researchers found a direct connection between increases in Medicaid and CHIP coverage and reductions in the rate of uninsured children in small towns and rural areas. For almost 20 years, ALLKids has been a point of pride for Alabama. Our CHIP program was the first to be authorized when federal law made the coverage possible, and ours has been a national leader in quality and reach. We can’t afford to turn our backs now on the progress we’ve made for our kids. Studies show that when children have health coverage they can get important doctor-recommended screenings and care to help them stay healthy and are more likely to enter school ready to learn. The study also found that Medicaid covers a higher percentage of adults living in small towns and rural areas (14 percent) than in our state’s metro areas (11 percent). Many adults covered by Medicaid are parents or caregivers, and when they have health care coverage, they are better able to provide children with the care they need to grow and thrive. Medicaid also helps improve financial security by protecting the entire family against medical debt and bankruptcy. Alabama’s rural seniors also depend more heavily on Medicaid coverage (24 percent) than their peers in urban areas (19 percent). The proposed cuts would fall especially hard on Alabama’s small-town nursing homes and other long-term care services. Even Alabama residents who aren’t directly covered by Medicaid should be concerned about what cuts to Medicaid would mean for hospitals, clinics and physicians serving our state’s small towns and rural communities. When fewer people are covered, ER visits and uncompensated care drive up costs for all of us and put rural hospitals and doctors’ offices at risk of closing their doors. When a community hospital closes, the entire community suffers. Medicaid is a lifeline for the rural parts of our state. It ensures that the most vulnerable among us–children, seniors and people with disabilities – can get the care they need. It keeps our rural hospitals running and able to serve patients who otherwise would be forced to drive long distances to get care. City dwellers sometimes forget that rural health care can be a life-saver for any traveler who has a highway emergency. Medicaid cuts are bad for Alabama. They won’t rein in personal health care costs. They won’t give our state flexibility to innovate and find better ways to deliver care. Instead, they will take away coverage from those who need it most and undermine the healthcare infrastructure on which we all depend. ••• Jim Carnes is policy director for Arise Citizens’ Policy Project, a statewide nonprofit coalition of 150 congregations and organizations working to improve public policies that affect low-income Alabamians.
