Rep. Rich McCormick, R-Ga., told Newsmax on Monday that Congress should be able to fund the government without defaulting to another continuing resolution, blasting the legislative gridlock as unnecessary and dangerous.
Appearing on "Wake Up America," McCormick said lawmakers are nowhere near ending the Department of Homeland Security funding impasse, citing a lack of action to bring members back to Washington for a vote.
"Since they haven't been called back to actually vote on a CR, we are not close at all," he said. "As a matter of fact, this is very frustrating."
McCormick took aim at Congress' repeated reliance on temporary funding measures, arguing there is no clear reason lawmakers cannot pass straightforward appropriations.
"A CR — that's what we're talking about, a continuing resolution, which we did several times when the Biden administration was in power," he said. "I don't get it. I don't understand why we can't just vote a straight line through a CR. I don't understand why we can't fund the government."
The congressman argued the standoff reflects a pattern in Washington, where shutdown threats are used as leverage rather than resolved through normal legislative order, and accused the Democrats of "trying to achieve from the minority what they could not achieve from the majority.
"They've done this time and time again. This is the third time just since I've been in Congress, in three years, including two of the longest ever over things that most Americans would think why?"
He warned that the consequences extend beyond politics, particularly when it comes to national security and global conflicts.
"When you're talking about defunding the DHS, defunding TSA, not only is it making it very hard for us to travel, making Americans very frustrated, treating TSA employees very unfairly, but, quite frankly, it's very dangerous — dangerous during a time of war," McCormick said, referring to the conflict with Iran.
"During a time where the whole reason the TSA was created, the whole reason that DHS was created, was because of Islamic fundamentalism," he added.
The Georgia Republican said those threats remain front and center today, making any attempt to undercut funding especially troubling.
"That's what we're fighting right now," he said. "That is ridiculous."
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Nicole Weatherholtz ✉
Nicole Weatherholtz, a Newsmax general assignment reporter covers news, politics, and culture. She is a National Newspaper Association award-winning journalist.
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