People For the American Way

PFAW Statement on Senate Vote to End #TrumpShutdown

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: January 22, 2018

Contact: Drew Courtney at People For the American Way

Email: [email protected]

Phone Number: 202-467-4999

In response to the Senate’s vote to pass a continuing resolution to end the #TrumpShutdown, People For the American Way Executive Vice President Marge Baker issued the following statement:

“The deal cut in the Senate today is profoundly disappointing. Once again, Congress has refused to take action to protect vulnerable young people who have contributed enormously to our country and our communities. And all because Mitch McConnell, Paul Ryan and Donald Trump are focused exclusively on pandering to their shrinking nativist, xenophobic base. The fact that it took a government shutdown to extract a simple promise that the Senate will be allowed to vote on legislation protecting DACA recipients shows just how stubbornly Republican leaders and their allies have dug in.

“For their part, Democrats need to stand up and fight hard for our values and against the ugly agenda being pushed by the GOP. Every day, young people protected by DACA are losing their protected status; people’s lives are at stake and there’s no time to waste. Americans across the ideological spectrum understand the urgent need to pass legislation protecting Dreamers, and that’s not going to happen unless we show the same commitment to fighting for Dreamers that Republicans have shown to fighting against them.”

People For the American Way is a progressive advocacy organization founded to fight right-wing extremism and defend constitutional values including free expression, religious liberty, equal justice under the law, and the right to meaningfully participate in our democracy.

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