Senate Majority Chief John Thune (R-S.D.) advised reporters Tuesday that there can be “strong” help inside the Senate Republican convention for a proposal provided to Democrats by Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wis.) to pay all federal staff — each important and furloughed — throughout the federal government shutdown.
Democrats might be beneath strain to help the proposal after Everett Kelley, the president of the American Federation of Authorities Workers, referred to as on Congress Monday to “pass a clean continuing resolution” to “end this shutdown today.”
Johnson, the lead GOP negotiator on paying federal staff through the shutdown, has made a serious concession by proposing to pay all federal staff — important and furloughed staff — through the shutdown. His Shutdown Equity Act initially would have paid solely important staff, equivalent to members of the army and air site visitors controllers.
Thune stated the most recent proposal is prone to choose up sturdy GOP help, which places the ball within the Democrats’ courtroom for alleviating the monetary burdens felt by a whole bunch of 1000’s of federal staff.
“I’ve talked to him several times about it over the weekend and we all voted for it last week,” Thune, stated referring to the Shutdown Equity Act.
He stated if Johnson needs to develop his invoice to pay furloughed staff through the shutdown, it will nonetheless have plenty of GOP help.
“If he wants to add the other, I think he’d probably have good, strong support from our side. As you recall, it was the Democrats who blocked that last week,” Thune added.
Three Democrats voted final week for Johnson’s proposal to pay important staff through the shutdown: Sens. John Fetterman (D-Pa.), Raphael Warnock (D-Ga.) and Jon Ossoff (D-Ga.), who faces a aggressive re-election subsequent yr.
Ossoff advised reporters final week that army service members, Transportation Safety Administration staff and air site visitors controllers needs to be paid in the event that they’re required to indicate as much as work.
Johnson is negotiating with Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) on the proposal. Van Hollen has launched the True Shutdown Equity Act, which might pay all federal staff through the shutdown however consists of language to forestall the Trump administration from ordering mass layoffs whereas the federal government is closed. Johnson blocked that invoice final week.
