Rep. Jasmine Crockett (D-Texas) on Sunday took aim at Republicans as she declared that Democrats wouldn’t be to blame should a government shutdown take place next month.
“The question is if we will do everything to keep the government open but, right now, they have a Trump trifecta. So when and if the government shuts down, it is gonna be on Trump and his minions,” she said of the GOP in an interview with MSNBC host Jonathan Capehart.
“It is not going to be on us as Democrats because we weren’t elected to gut Social Security, to gut Medicaid and Medicare, to gut USAID, to gut any of these programs that they’re going after.”
Crockett continued, “We didn’t — that’s not what we campaigned on, so that’s not what we’re going to do. We’ll let them do that by themselves.”
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) — when asked by CNN’s Jake Tapper on Sunday about Democrats’ “strategy” with the looming government funding deadline on March 14 — said Democrats will “cross that bridge when we get to it.”
He then called on lawmakers in his party to stop the “reckless” budget blueprint from going forward when Republicans bring it to the House floor on Tuesday.
Jeffries added that funding was the GOP’s “responsibility” as they control all three branches of government.
Crockett — after Capehart asked if her party has the “stomach to hold votes” from House Republicans to keep the government open — said she “certainly” hopes so, adding that she won’t vote for the proposal.
“Here’s the thing, our strength lies in standing together and honestly, that is a message that not only applies to us that are sitting in the House but that actually applies to Democrats across the board,” Crockett said.
“The more that we can stand together, the stronger we are. Everyone knows united we stand, divided we fall. And so, we were divided in the election. We can’t allow them to divide us at this moment.”
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