WASHINGTON, DC – Today, after Congressional leaders and President Trump reached a tentative, short-term agreement to end the Trump Shutdown and temporarily reopen the government without new wall funds, U.S. Senator Jack Reed issued the following statement:

“President Trump never should have shut down the federal government.  It achieved nothing, wasted billions of taxpayer dollars, weakened public safety, and hurt the American people.

“Americans across the political spectrum have every right to be angry at President Trump for dragging this out when reopening the government was the right answer all along. 

“The Trump shutdown was incredibly wasteful.  The federal government has a responsibility to help keep the American people safe, and the Trump shutdown weakened the government’s ability to do that. 

“I support re-opening the government and getting our country working again.  And I am incredibly grateful to the hundreds of thousands of federal workers and their families, who were left without a paycheck for over a month.  They suffered real hardships, and it’s a positive that we’ve already passed legislation ensuring their back pay.  I plan to continue working to ensure they are paid as quickly as possible.  No president should ever again use the federal workforce as a hostage. 

“With the federal government open, I will work in good faith on sensible border security policies and to fully fund the federal government for the rest of 2019. 

“This is just a short-term fix, but it is good news that the President finally realized the damage his strategy was inflicting on the country.”