Senator Jacky Rosen from Nevada is sticking with the shutdown strategy put forth by Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, despite the pleas from major tourism businesses in her state for relief.
Rosen criticized Republicans for the 34-day shutdown, urging Congress to pass a clean continuing resolution (CR) to get the government running again. This came after nearly 500 travel industry organizations, including 12 from Nevada, contacted her for help. Interestingly, Nevada Democrats have opposed the bipartisan Clean CR aimed at funding the government 13 times since late September.
“They should talk to [Senate Majority Leader] John Thune about this, because the president… [Speaker] Mike Johnson and Sen. Thune are deliberately shutting down the government. They’re not cooperating with us to get it reopened,” Rosen said in remarks made to DCNF on Monday. “It’s on them.”
Rosen remains supportive of Schumer’s stringent tactics, noting that federal employees, such as air traffic controllers and TSA agents, are working without pay during the shutdown. Many U.S. airports are understaffed, leading to frequent flight delays.
Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy reported that over 5,000 domestic flights were delayed just on Sunday. Travel conditions are expected to be challenging this week as the shutdown continues.
Major tourism companies in Nevada, including MGM Resorts International and Caesars Entertainment, have warned of “catastrophic” economic impacts if the shutdown persists into the holiday travel season, with Thanksgiving being just around the corner. The tourism sector is the largest employer in the state, and the ongoing closures could be immediately felt by millions of travelers.
The U.S. Travel Association estimates that the domestic travel industry has been losing about $1 billion a week since the start of the shutdown. Meanwhile, the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office has projected that the total economic cost of the ongoing shutdown could range between $7 billion and $14 billion.
In contrast to Rosen’s stance, Nevada’s other senator, Catherine Cortez Masto, has consistently backed the Republican-led bipartisan CR to reopen the government. She argues that a shutdown would negatively impact Nevada’s voters.
A letter from the U.S. Travel Association doesn’t specify any political party but supports the Republican method of funding the government through a clean CR. Major airlines and various industry groups are also advocating for quick passage of a stopgap funding bill to end the shutdown.
Despite this, Senate Democrats have declined to reopen the government unless Republicans agree to include certain health care provisions in the funding package. Thune has responded by saying Republicans won’t allow the government to be held hostage over partisan demands from Democrats.
“As I’ve said many times, we’re open to discussing health care with the Democrats,” Thune stated on the Senate floor. “But first, the Democratic Party needs to stop risking people’s lives and get the government running again.”
