WASHINGTON (TNND) — Pennsylvania Democratic Sen. John Fetterman said that Americans should not be used as leverage in the government shutdown.
Fetterman reportedly said this in response to Democratic Massachusetts Rep. Katherine Clark who recently said the shutdown can be used as “leverage.”
“Shutdowns are terrible and, of course, there will be families that are going to suffer,” Clark said last week. “We take that responsibility very seriously. But it is one of the few leverage times we have.”
Fetterman on Monday said that Americans aren’t “any party’s leverage.”
He said the government has to open in order to pay Capitol Police, pay the military and to feed all the people that are on Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits.
On Tuesday, Fetterman called the government shutdown a choice.
“Most Americans would find it incredibly difficult to work for 5 weeks without a paycheck,” he said on X. “This shutdown is a choice. Let’s end this and pay our workers—a vote that shows principle over political party.”
The government has been shut down for 28 days due to Congress not being able to pass a budget to fund the government.
Beginning Nov. 1, SNAP benefits will be paused due to unavailable funds to support the program.
Recently, Tennessee GOP Sen. Marsha Blackburn put her support behind a bill to keep funding food assistance through the government shutdown.