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Source: United States House of Representatives – Congressman Steve Scalise (1st District of Louisiana)

NEW ORLEANS, La.—Yesterday, House Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-La.) joined Fox News’ The Big Weekend Show to discuss Democrats’ refusal to reopen the government over their partisan demands, including taxpayer-funded health care for illegal immigrants. Leader Scalise urged constituents to call their Democrat Senators and tell them to end the shutdown and vote ‘yes’ on House Republicans’ clean CR, which includes the same spending levels Democrats voted for in March.

Click here or the image above to view Leader Scalise’s full interview.
Excerpts from Leader Scalise’s interview:On debunking Democrats’ claims they don’t support free health care for illegal aliens:“Chuck Schumer decided he wanted to shut the government down. In doing so, he didn’t just vote ‘no’ on that bill. He filed an alternative bill, and the bill includes a trillion and a half dollars in new spending. You can go read his bill. Part of what he does in his bill is he takes away, repeals the verifications on illegals getting free health care. So on one hand, they’ll point to the law and go, don’t worry, the law says illegals can’t get free health care. But in the bill that Chuck Schumer is demanding that we pass to open the government up, he repeals the verifications. It’s like saying you’ve got a nightclub and you can only get in if you’re 21 years old, but then Chuck Schumer passes a law and says you can’t check ID. Well, guess what? Anybody who walks up to the door and says, ‘I want to be let in,’ you’ve got to let them in.“It’s why, by the way, the estimates say, illegals will get about $100 billion of your tax money in government health care. That’s in his alternative bill. He filed it. You can go read it. Why did he include it in is I think a fair question. But the problem is Chuck Schumer put that in his bill.”On Chuck Schumer appeasing the far left:“Well, you can see the pressure building because obviously, the far left has gotten Chuck Schumer doing their bidding right now, and that’s what it’s about. The far left, the Socialists in their party that are about to elect Mamdani, want a fight with Donald Trump. They don’t care what it’s about. Schumer is doing what they want because he’s afraid of AOC in New York. Well, think about if you’re a Democrat senator from a state that’s not New York, and you are now caught up in this New York proxy fight, and the whole government is being held hostage over it. Troops will not be paid in a few days if they still keep playing this game. Other federal employees, the same thing.”On ending the government shutdown:“All we need is five more Democrats. We’ve gotten three so far. Five more Democrats need to end this madness. It is a mad game. It’s insanity when you think of why Chuck Schumer has shut the government down to gut rural hospital funding, to give health care to illegals. But ultimately, five Democrats in the Senate need to vote for that bill and the government’s back open again. I hope it’ll happen. We don’t need to be in this position.“It shouldn’t have happened. But the Democrats have done it. They’re voting to continue the shutdown. John Thune is going to bring them back in on Monday, and they’re going to have another opportunity. So people, if you’re represented by a Democrat senator, call your Democrat senator and say, ‘Look, just vote to open the government up.’”On Democrats holding the American people hostage:“Well, there’s nothing to trade because ultimately what we passed through the House two weeks ago is a bill that is the same funding level of government that Chuck Schumer himself voted for just back in March. So where’s the Chuck Schumer from March. Did he get kidnapped by the left and somebody else is there? I don’t know. But at the end of the day, Chuck Schumer even voted for these spending levels. They’re playing political games with the American people, and I think people are fed up with that. We’ve got differences, obviously, on a lot of bills. We’re in a conference committee on a number of the appropriations bills right now. Why don’t they go back to work negotiating those differences? But you’ve got to open the government up first. You can’t hold the American people hostage, not pay our troops, for goodness’ sake, and all of those other things. Women Infant and Children program, the WIC program. Those people don’t even get their benefits while Chuck Schumer is playing these political games.” 

Source: United States House of Representatives – Congressman Steve Scalise (1st District of Louisiana)

WASHINGTON, D.C.—Today, House Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-La.) joined Newsmax’s The Record with Greta Van Susteren to discuss Democrats’ malpractice in shutting the government down over demands for harmful spending for illegal immigrants’ health care. Leader Scalise called on Senate Democrats to open the government back up so Congress can finish the appropriations process.

Click here or the image above to view Leader Scalise’s full interview.
Excerpts from Leader Scalise’s interview:On Democrats rejecting a clean CR and shutting down the government:“[House Republicans’ CR has] no changes, no new things, no taking out things that we don’t like. It just keeps everything status quo till November 21st, so we have more time to negotiate our differences. And believe me, our differences are very wide between Republicans and Democrats. But you can see they have been hell-bent on getting funding, taxpayer funding for health care for illegal aliens. And that’s why they shut the government down. Maxine Waters even confirmed that yesterday. So they have made it clear why they want to shut the government down because of things that are not in the bill that we voted on. 99% of Democrats voted to shut the government down in the House. That bill is in the Senate. They can vote today to open the government back up.” On Democrats halting Republicans’ appropriations work:  “Frankly, if you look at it, it’s supposed to be, Greta, the 12 normal appropriations bills that fund government. The House Appropriations Committee has passed all 12 out of committee. The Senate has passed a lot of their bills out of committee as well. And so there are differences between the two. And normally, you would have a negotiation over the differences between those bills with Republicans and Democrats. That was actually happening. And there is a conference committee. A lot of people really haven’t seen a conference committee, but it’s going on right now on those bills. And that all stops during a government shutdown. And so if Chuck Schumer votes to reopen the government and end this tantrum that he’s having, then we can get back to a negotiation on the differences on those bills and get normal government operations open again.” On Republicans rooting out wasteful federal spending: “Yeah, they’re going to have to drop this crazy demand that illegals should get health care for free. I mean, look, the American people don’t want that. And if you look at what we did in the One Big Beautiful Bill, the Working Families Tax Cut, we put verifications in place to save taxpayer money from waste, fraud, and abuse. And there was hundreds of billions of dollars. Everybody knew it was going on in all parts of government. One of the areas was in verifying whether somebody is here legally. They’re not supposed to be getting taxpayer-funded benefits on things like Medicaid.” On Democrats trying to focus on Obamacare instead of funding the government: “Greta, there are things that expire that Democrats, by the way, set to expire in December. That’s not supposed to be part of the government funding debate. Government funding goes through September 30th. There are other things that expire in December that we can have separate debates on. The Democrats and Chuck Schumer are trying to bring those debates into this government shutdown debate and create another set of arguments. At the end of the day, stop holding hostages. If you want to have a debate on all of this stuff, whether it’s government funding, our defense priorities, border security, or health care, we can debate all of those things, but not while the government shut down, not while Chuck Schumer is holding our military pay hostage, Greta.” 

Source: United States House of Representatives – Congressman Steve Scalise (1st District of Louisiana)

WASHINGTON, D.C.—Today, House Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-La.) appeared on Fox News’ The Faulkner Focus to discuss how Democrats are holding the government hostage over demands for free, taxpayer-funded health care for illegal immigrants. Leader Scalise outlined how hardworking Americans are suffering under the Schumer Shutdown and called on Senate Democrats to vote with Senate Republicans and end the chaos.

Click here or the image above to view Leader Scalise’s full interview. 
Excerpts from Leader Scalise’s interview:On Democrats’ push for taxpayer funding for illegal immigrants:“I think what you’re seeing is Democrats are starting to feel real political pressure that the American people figured out why Chuck Schumer shut the government down. It’s not over some nebulous issues. It’s over trying to get health care, free, taxpayer-funded health care for illegals. That’s why Chuck Schumer shut the government down. They filed it in their alternative bill. Look, the Speaker pointed it out. Stephanopoulos was reading from Democrat talking points which were just false. They filed a bill, the Democrats did, to get rid of all the verifications that President Trump put in place. President Trump has been very clear: We’re going to secure the border, but we also are going to protect taxpayer money for hard-working families, not to give that money away to people here illegally. We put that in our bill. Chuck Schumer wants to reverse that and give taxpayer-funded benefits to illegals, and he shut the government down to do it. It’s insane.” On the consequences of the Democrat shutdown for hardworking Americans: “Well, clearly, Chuck Schumer doesn’t care right now about the American people. He’s trying to appease the most far-left radical elements of his base, and he’s doing it over things like troop pay. There are real consequences to American families during a government shutdown. Military troops who are out there defending our freedoms will not get paid during a shutdown. Closings on homes in most American cities are canceled today if you need flood insurance, for example. That program is shut down right now while Chuck Schumer shut the government down. Those are things affecting real families. I mean, so many other things that are real that Chuck Schumer doesn’t seem to care about because he’s fighting to get health care for illegals at the expense of taxpayers.” On the need for Senate Democrats to vote on the clean CR: “Look, President Trump brought the leaders into the White House just a few days ago, Chuck Schumer, Speaker Johnson, all the leaders, and he made it very clear, look, we’ll negotiate over how to properly fund the whole United States government, but we’re not going to do it while Chuck Schumer is holding people hostage. Let’s have this short-term funding bill go through so it buys us just until November 21st. This isn’t a long-term solution, but let’s at least free up the American people, get the government back open again until November 21st, while we negotiate our differences. We have big differences, but don’t hold the American people hostage while Chuck Schumer has a tantrum. “The American people see what their priorities are. They literally want to shut the government down to fund $200 billion of taxpayer money for illegal health care. That’s why Chuck Schumer is shutting the government down. It’s not going to hold. Five Democrat senators need to reverse course and vote today to open the government back up again, and we can end this madness, but that’s where we are.”

Source: United States House of Representatives – Congressman Steve Scalise (1st District of Louisiana)

WASHINGTON, D.C.—Today, House Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-La.) joined Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.), House Majority Whip Tom Emmer (R-Minn.), and Conference Chairwoman Lisa McClain (R-Mich.) to discuss Democrats and Chuck Schumer holding Americans hostage over partisan demands. Leader Scalise highlighted how House Democrats voted to shut down the government but are looking to blame others, and that the shutdown could easily end if Senate Democrats vote to pass the clean CR the House passed two weeks ago.

Click here or the image above to view Leader Scalise’s full remarks.
Excerpts from Leader Scalise’s remarks:On Democrats shutting the government down:“As we mark day 2 of Chuck Schumer’s shutdown, we know that there is a very straightforward way out of this, and that is for Senate Democrats to join with Senate Republicans and vote for the bill that opens up the government and allows negotiations to continue. Surely, by opening up the government again, it doesn’t resolve all of our differences, but it allows us to negotiate without Chuck Schumer holding the American people hostage. That’s really what’s going on here. We had a vote on this House floor two weeks ago, and 99% of House Democrats voted to shut the government down, led by their leader, Hakeem Jeffries, who whipped their members to vote to shut the government down. “And so, they’re running around this town right now doing podcasts and trying to be commentators. They’re doing everything but being legislators. When they had an opportunity to actually govern, House Democrats voted to shut the government down. And now that the government shut down, they’re trying to blame somebody else for what they did. They voted to do this. They can get bailed out by Senate Democrats. The bill is still sitting over in the Senate. And so rather than trying to figure out who to assign blame to, what they should do is go over to the Senate, talk to their Senate Democrat counterparts, and say, Senate Democrats, Chuck Schumer, open up the government again. And then let’s have a negotiation over our differences. President Trump, you saw Vice President Vance as well, saying, ‘We will negotiate, but not while you’re holding hostages of the American people.’”On Democrats demanding taxpayer dollars for healthcare for illegal immigrants:“Throwing hundreds of billions of new taxpayer dollars to things like funding illegal alien healthcare is not the answer to that problem. And it surely is not the reason for Democrats to be shutting down the government. And yet that’s what they’re doing. Some of their own leaders have confirmed that’s why they’re shutting down the government. And it’s unacceptable to most American people who just want the government to work for them and deserve that. And we had a vote on the House floor. You can go look at that vote and see that over 99% of Democrats voted to shut the government down. It’s a real vote that we held, and that bill is still sitting in the Senate.”On House Republicans getting their work done:“We stand ready to negotiate on a lot of differences. We are in a conference committee right now on three of the appropriations bills, and Tom Cole and his appropriators have passed all 12 of the bills out of committee. John Thune, to his credit, changed course from the old days of Chuck Schumer, when Chuck Schumer ran the Senate and didn’t bring any of the appropriations bills out of committee. “They’re now moving those bills in the Senate. And so, we can have a broader negotiation on how to properly fund government, how to properly set priorities over funding government. Which, by the way, shouldn’t be complicated. It’s what every family does sitting around their kitchen table. They figure out how to properly budget their households. Businesses do this all the time. A small business, whether it’s good times or bad, has to sit down and figure out how to make the budget work. Washington needs to do the same thing. And that means House Democrats and Senate Democrats need to stop holding temper tantrums, stop making trillion and a half dollar demands for illegal alien funding, and vote to open up the government, release the hostages, and let’s go get back to a negotiation over what the priorities of this country really should be.”

Source: United States House of Representatives – Representative Bennie G Thompson (D-MS)

Washington, D.C. – Today, Congressman Bennie G. Thompson announced Mississippi’s open application period for the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s Nonprofit Security Grant Program (NSGP) for Fiscal Year (FY) 2025. The NSGP provides funding for physical security enhancements and other security-related activities for eligible nonprofit organizations anywhere in the country that are at risk of a terrorist attack.

Congressman Thompson has been a steadfast advocate for the NSGP. Under his leadership as chairman of the Committee on Homeland Security in the U.S. House of Representatives, Congress enacted the Securing American Nonprofit Organizations Against Terrorism Act (P.L. No: 116-108), which was sponsored by Congressman Thompson. This legislation formally authorized the NSGP, increased NSGP funding, and made funds available to nonprofit organizations located in rural and urban areas. In 2022, Congress enacted the Nonprofit Security Grant Program Improvement Act of 2022 (P.L. No: 117-263), which was also sponsored by Congressman Thompson. This legislation increased NSGP’s funding, strengthened its impact and effectiveness, and ensured greater resources to protect nonprofit organizations across the nation.

“The Nonprofit Security Grant Program empowers nonprofit organizations, including houses of worship, to continue serving their communities without fear or disruption. Given the concerning rise of violent threats targeting these institutions, it is imperative that Federal resources are made available to protect and preserve nonprofits and safeguard our communities.”

All grant proposals must be submitted to the Mississippi Office of Homeland Security (MOHS) by 5pm, October 17^th, 2025. MOHS will host grant-writing sessions for interested applicants. For additional information on applying for NSGP funding, please visit: https://www.homelandsecurity.ms.gov/grants/homeland-security-non-profit-grant-programs-np

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Source: United States House of Representatives – Representative Bennie G Thompson (D-MS)

BOLTON, MS – Congressman Bennie G. Thompson (D-MS) is pleased to announce that the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) has awarded two Museum Grants for African American History and Culture (AAHC) to institutions in Mississippi.

Jackson State University has been awarded $317,039, for the project “Building the Capacity of the Margaret Walker Center: Improved and Expanded Access to Collections.” The Margaret Walker Center (MWC) at Jackson State University will move its archives to secure, environmentally controlled, temporary storage during building renovations and HVAC replacement made necessary due to severe storm damage in 2023. During this project, the MWC will build upon the HBCU History and Culture Access Consortium (HCAC), a digital humanities initiative with the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture in two ways: digitizing nearly 1,000 oral histories most threatened by the environmental challenges in Ayer Hall and transferring 35,000 items from a fee-based digital platform to an open-source program used in the HCAC. These efforts will guarantee long-term preservation and access to MWC’s collections.

Shape Up Mississippi has been awarded $98,000, for the project “Collaborative Capacity Building: Cultural Connections and Bridging Heritage.” The Catfish Row Museum (CRM) will partner with the Mound Bayou Museum (MBM) to develop and expand public programs and exhibitions. Project activities include the creation of a short film, and two permanent timeline exhibits that highlight the contributions of Vicksburg and Mound Bayou during significant historical phases, such as the cotton plantation era, slavery, the Civil War, Reconstruction, and the Civil Rights Movement. These exhibits will showcase community resilience and the shared history of both museums, emphasizing the narrative of cooperation that led to the founding of Mound Bayou by formerly enslaved people. Professional development workshops aimed at enhancing museum operations and management will be facilitated by experienced museum professionals in collaboration with local Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs), specifically Jackson State University and Tougaloo College. This initiative aims to empower both museums, ensuring they effectively serve their communities while promoting a deeper understanding of their shared cultural heritage.

“These investments not only preserve and expand access to African American history and culture, but also strengthen the capacity of our local institutions to tell the stories that matter to our communities,” said Congressman Thompson. “Jackson State University and Shape Up Mississippi are doing vital work to safeguard history, empower communities, and ensure that future generations have access to these cultural treasures.”

Source: United States House of Representatives – Representative Bennie G Thompson (D-MS)

BOLTON, MS – Congressman Bennie G. Thompson (D-MS) is pleased to announce that Jackson State University has been selected to receive funding from the U.S. Department of Education under the Rehabilitation Long-Term Training – Rehabilitation of the Blind Program (84.129P).

The university will receive $175,000.00 for the first budget period (October 1, 2025 – September 30, 2026), with an anticipated total of five years of support. This funding will provide long-term training for rehabilitation counselors who specialize in delivering vocational rehabilitation services to individuals who are blind.

“This investment in Jackson State University highlights the importance of preparing skilled professionals to assist individuals who are blind in reaching their full potential and achieving independence,” said Congressman Thompson. “I am proud to see JSU continue its leadership in advancing opportunities for students while serving the broader community.”

Source: United States House of Representatives – Representative Bennie G Thompson (D-MS)

Washington, D.C. –  Today, United States Representative Bennie G. Thompson (D-MS) released the following statement:

“Republicans control the House, the Senate, and the White House.  Yet instead of working together to keep the government open and protect American families, Donald Trump and House Republicans chose to shut it down,” said Rep. Thompson.

“As the only member of Mississippi’s Congressional House Delegation who voted for the Affordable Care Act, I have always stood with working families who need access to affordable health care.  The Republican spending bill does the opposite.  It rips away health care from families who finally gained coverage and makes premiums unaffordable for thousands more.

“Health care should not be a political football.  In the richest country in the world, no family should be forced to choose between paying the bills and going to the doctor.  Republicans say they care in private, but when it is time to act, they fall in line with Donald Trump.  Shame on them.”

If Congress does not extend health care tax credits immediately, hundreds of thousands of Americans will lose coverage, and millions more will see their costs skyrocket.  In Mississippi’s Second Congressional District alone, 81,000 people will see their health care costs rise.  For a family of four making $64,000 a year, premiums would increase by $2,571.

Rep. Thompson and Democrats are fighting to reopen the government, protect health care, lower out-of-pocket costs, and ensure working families are not left behind.

Source: United States House of Representatives – Congressman Scott Peters (52nd District of California)

“The murder of Charlie Kirk at Utah Valley University was horrific. In a democratic society, we do not settle our political disagreements through violence. I pray for Mr. Kirk’s wife and young children as they grieve the loss of their husband and father.

I mourn the loss of any life. I mourn the lives of Minnesota State Rep. Melissa Hortman and her husband, who were brutally assassinated in their own home in June. I mourn the lives of the children at Annunciation Catholic School and pray for the injured students at Evergreen High School in Colorado. We owe it to each other to build a society free from violence.

I voted in support of H.Res.719 – Honoring the life and legacy of Charles “Charlie” James Kirk, because it forcefully condemns political violence, extremism, and hatred in all its forms.

Many of the beliefs Mr. Kirk held and statements he made directly contradicted the principles of equality and justice on which our nation was founded. He made many inflammatory remarks, including statements that were racist, sexist, and homophobic. I strongly condemn his language and ideology.

However, at this extremely difficult and dangerous time in our nation’s history, the safety and security of the American people must remain our highest priority. As my colleague, Jamie Raskin said in a statement about his yes vote, “the Resolution repeatedly condemns all political violence, extremism and hatred in unequivocal terms. It’s a very positive thing to get our Colleagues, Republicans and Democrats alike, on record condemning these dangerous forces when we hear so many outrageous calls to polarization, demonization, censorship, hatred, violence and division, often coming from the highest levels of government. We should overlook whatever surplus verbiage is contained in this Resolution designed to make the vote difficult for Democrats. We cannot fall for that obvious political trap and should rise above it.” It is time to turn down the heat and stop encouraging this division. We must de-escalate the inflammatory rhetoric in our political discourse and renew our commitment to recognizing the shared humanity of those with whom we disagree.”

Source: United States House of Representatives – Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton (District of Columbia)

WASHINGTON, D.C. –  After the federal government shutdown closed the National Capital Planning Commission (NCPC) and the U.S. Commission of Fine Arts (CFA), federal agencies which play a significant role in D.C. land-use decisions, Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC) announced that she plans to introduce a bill to reopen these agencies and to exempt them from future shutdowns to prevent interruptions in local D.C. land-use decisions. Although Norton has introduced bills to remove NCPC’s and CFA’s authority over these decisions, their jurisdictions remain until her bills are enacted.

“While it is unfair that many of D.C.’s local land use issues are dictated by federal agencies, it adds insult to injury that these strictly local decisions are delayed and interrupted during federal government shutdowns,” Norton said. “Congress should also pass my National Capital Planning Commission District of Columbia Home Rule Act and my Commission of Fine Arts District of Columbia Home Rule Act to give D.C. greater autonomy over its land use policies.”

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