GOP Sen. Lisa Murkowski told CNN that “constructive conversations” including both parties need to continue happening, and “we need to get the government open,” explaining that there’s an urgency to address the shutdown as people will soon start missing paychecks.
Asked about Office of Management and Budget Director Russ Vought, who has threatened further cuts to the federal workforce amid the shutdown, Murkowski said she worries that the news of potential firings causes “uncertainty,” highlighting “48 hours of panic” in her native Alaska over whether communities would be able to receive essential services provided by planes who need support from the Department of Transportation.
Pressed by CNN on if the Trump administration should be targeting blue states, Murkowski answered, “there should be no targeting of anyone. A government shutdown impacts everybody, unfortunately. We don’t need to unnecessarily target any other areas more than others.”
GOP Sen. Susan Collins, who broke with Republicans on President Donald Trump’s signature domestic policy bill earlier this year, said she thinks the White House needs to be involved in bipartisan talks to end the shutdown, adding, “the onus is really on Chuck Schumer,” whom she noted previously opposed shutdowns.
The Senate Appropriations Committee Chair told CNN that she has circulated her own plan to reopen the government and Democratic lawmakers, like Sen. Jeanne Shaheen, have done the same, so she hopes “we can come to an agreement.”
Collins later told CNN that she doesn’t agree with Vought about firing furloughed workers, calling it “extremely unfair” and warning it would “leave agencies unable to function efficiently when they reopen.”