McClellan Votes to Keep Federal Government Open, Protect Virginian Families

Washington, D.C. – Today, Congresswoman Jennifer McClellan (VA-04) issued the following statement after voting in support of H.R. 7463, the Extension of Continuing Appropriations and Other Matters Act 2024, to avoid a government shutdown once again: 

“Chaos and dysfunction have defined the Republican conference from the beginning of the 118th Congress. They have manufactured one crisis after another. At every point, House Democrats remained the only adults in the room, providing the votes necessary to avert catastrophes and protect the American people. In May, we bailed Republicans out after they brought the nation to the brink of a devastating default. In September, November, and January, Democrats put People Over Politics to pass Continuing Resolutions (CRs) to avoid government shutdowns. 

“Today, for the fourth time this Congress, Democrats voted to keep the federal government open and operating. I voted for the Continuing Resolution to protect our economic stability and hardworking Virginian families, including the 170,000 federal employees and 130,000 active-duty servicemembers in Virginia who would have been forced to work without pay during a shutdown. 

“While we avoided another shutdown, today’s vote is not cause for celebration. For months, Republicans have squandered legislative session weeks and made little progress on our annual appropriations bills. We cannot continue to operate on these stop-gap measures with the looming threat of a shutdown. House Republicans must abandon their extreme agenda and prioritize our nation’s needs over their own interests. As always, House Democrats stand ready and willing to work in a bipartisan manner to develop a responsible budget. It’s past time Speaker Johnson and Republicans actually govern and do their jobs.”