Duckworth Statement on Bipartisan Omnibus Compromise
[WASHINGTON, DC] – After voting in favor of a bipartisan compromise to fund the United States Government through the end of the fiscal year, U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) issued the following statement:
“This bipartisan government funding legislation may not be perfect, but good governance requires compromise and leadership. There are obviously things I’d have liked to see changed, including allowing Dreamers to continue to contribute to our country and have the chance to become citizens, but the President refused to accept a deal that would solve the manufactured crisis he created.
“Nonetheless, I am proud this bill includes new funding I helped secure to make childcare more affordable for student parents and hundreds of millions of additional dollars I fought for to help state-run Veteran homes improve their facilities. The state of Illinois can and should apply for this new funding to better protect the health of Quincy Veterans Home residents as well as to finally build a new Veterans home in Chicago. Senator Durbin and I promised to secure new federal funding to help Illinois Veterans and their families; the Rauner administration must do its part too.
“This plan also increases national defense funding, helps improve military readiness and gives our troops a well-deserved pay raise. It makes important investments in our infrastructure and transportation funding, supports Job Corps and job training programs that help working families and it puts significant funding into ending our nation’s opioid crisis. This bipartisan legislation also takes a small but helpful step toward common-sense gun safety policies by strengthening our background check system for people attempting to purchase a firearm. However, as countless young people around the country have made clear in recent weeks, this cannot be the only step Congress takes. It’s past time for Congress to finally address our nation’s unique epidemic of needless, preventable gun violence in a serious way.”
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