Tester Slams Short-Term Budget That Fails Montana, Tells Congress To Do Its Job

Senator: Congress must stop governing crisis to crisis and deadline to deadline

(U.S. Senate) – U.S. Senator Jon Tester today slammed the short-term budget bill that hurts Montana and urged his colleagues to put politics aside to negotiate a long-term budget.

Tester took to the Senate floor to demand that any long-term budget agreement include critical Montana provisions, such as CHIP reauthorization, funding for Community Health Centers, and a funding boost to strengthen border security and provide certainty for America’s military.

Tester is sponsoring legislation to withhold the pay for all members of Congress during a government shutdown.

Tester is also sponsoring a bill to guarantee that in the case of a government shutdown, all military personnel will receive regular paychecks and death benefits will still be provided to families of service members killed overseas.

Tester will oppose a short-term budget bill today to force both parties back to the negotiating table. Congress has failed to pass a long-term budget for 2018 for 111 days.