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Tampa Bay Times Editorial Board excoriates extremists like Luna playing politics with people’s lives
This week, Anna Paulina Luna voted against the bipartisan continuing resolution that will keep the federal government open and ensure our active-duty service members are paid during the holiday season.
“Republican defections came after House Democrats signaled they would support the speaker’s plan, which gave wavering Republicans an easy opportunity to have their cake and eat it, too,” writes Tampa Bay Times Editorial Board.
Luna’s rogue move would have “put hundreds of thousands of people out of work [and] delayed an array of services for children, seniors and businesses,” demonstrating once again that she will continue to choose extremism over Floridians.
DCCC Spokesperson Justin Chermol:
“Anna Paulina Luna is too extreme to be trusted to deliver for Florida’s middle-class families.”
Tampa Bay Times: Two Tampa Bay area lawmakers voted for shutting down the government
Editorial Board | November 16, 2023
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Everyone makes choices in life. You’re either part of the problem or part of the solution. Twelve Florida House Republicans chose the former this week in opposing a last-minute measure to keep the federal government open.
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For [Mike] Johnson, whom his divided conference named speaker only weeks ago, the outcome was both a legislative victory and a political defeat. While the House maneuvered to avoid a government shutdown as early as Friday night, the Republican House majority yet again failed to govern as the majority.
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Twelve Florida Republicans joined the party’s holdouts to put the government on the brink and to embarrass their newly-minted speaker.
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It’s further worth noting that the Republican defections came after House Democrats signaled they would support the speaker’s plan, which gave wavering Republicans an easy opportunity to have their cake and eat it, too.
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But outside Capitol Hill, back in the real world, in places like Scott Franklin’s Lakeland, and in St. Petersburg, whose Republican congresswoman, Rep. Anna Paulina Luna, also voted against the bill, a government shutdown is more than a partisan talking point, especially as the holiday season nears.
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A federal shutdown could have put hundreds of thousands of people out of work, delayed an array of services for children, seniors and businesses and put a dangerous crimp on traveler safety as the airlines ramp up for the Thanksgiving weekend. While federal employees might be entitled to back pay upon returning, the move could have created economic hardship for many, and robbed the economy of coveted cash as the holiday shopping season begins.
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The Congressional Budget Office estimated that the five-week partial shutdown that ended in 2019 reduced the nation’s economic output by $11 billion, including $3 billion that would never be recovered. Shutdowns also negatively affect business investment and hiring decisions as companies cannot obtain the federal permits, certifications or loans they need to operate. This is real disruption to real people who did nothing to deserve the agony.
- For all the theatrics this week, Congress bought itself only a few months to reach agreement on longer-term spending. So the uncertainties remain as a dimming armistice in the Republican ranks prepares to get tested again. Will your representative be part of the problem, or part of the solution?
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