Carper Statement on President Trump’s Shutdown Speech

U.S. Senator Tom Carper (D-Del.) released the following statement regarding President Trump’s speech on the government shutdown:
 

“Mr. President, there is one way to end this shutdown: re-open the government this weekend. Once that happens, I would urge you to convene a bipartisan meeting with leaders in the House and Senate to have serious and substantive discussions about securing our borders and fixing our broken immigration system. Many of my colleagues and I have been steeped in these issues for years. We know the ins and outs and have had success finding areas of agreement in the past. We can do it again. But we cannot hold federal workers, their families and their paychecks hostage in the meantime. 

“There has already been unanimous agreement in the Senate about providing funding for important border security measures. There is also bipartisan agreement about providing permanent protections and a pathway to legal status for Dreamers and Temporary Protected Status (TPS) recipients. And, just last week, even the U.S. Chamber of Commerce acknowledged that the way to seriously address migration to our border is to provide aid to the Northern Triangle countries in Central America — Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador — and fully fund the Alliance for Prosperity. These are some of the common sense ideas that I believe both my Democratic and Republican colleagues stand ready and willing to discuss further, Mr. President, as soon as our government is open for business.”