As of the writing of this column, the government remains unfunded and shut down. That means over 700,000 federal workers have been furloughed and nearly the same number are working without pay, including tens of thousands of Nevada military personnel, air traffic controllers, union members, law enforcement agents, and military nurses.

One of Congress’ many roles is passing a budget to keep the government, and all its agencies and programs, funded. I believe it is critical for both Representatives and Senators to come together in a bipartisan way to pass real, responsible government funding bills.

Currently, Republicans control the White House, the Senate, and the House of Representatives, and they decided to put together a budget without important, bipartisan input from Democrats. That is why Senate Republicans and Democrats are currently at an impasse and why this shutdown has dragged on: because Congressional Republicans and this administration are unwilling to work in a bipartisan way with Democrats to address rising health care costs we’re all concerned about.

I want to make something clear: I voted to keep the government open. That is because I wanted to avoid a costly shutdown that is hurting hardworking Nevadans. I’ve been consistent about this under both Democratic and Republican administrations. I’ll be the first to say we need a bipartisan solution to address the health care crisis Republicans brought upon us with their so-called “Big, Beautiful Bill”, but we should not be swapping the pain of one group of Americans for another.

While I don’t believe a government shutdown that is harming people is the only way to get a deal, what my Democratic colleagues are asking is for Republicans to come to the table to help Americans keep their affordable health care coverage. I’m all in on addressing the looming health care crisis. As of this writing, the Affordable Care Act’s enhanced premium tax credits are set to expire at the end of the year. Up to 20,000 Nevadans could lose their Affordable Care Act coverage entirely, and over 100,000 Nevadans will see their premiums rise by thousands of dollars each year. That’s just unacceptable.

I’ve been leading conversations with colleagues on both sides of the aisle about a solution that funds our government and lowers health care costs. Nevadans sent me to Washington to be your advocate, and that means I will always work with anyone who wants to help our families. 

As an example, as I noted in my last column, in 2018, I passed bipartisan legislation with Republican Senator Susan Collins of Maine to fund Alzheimer’s research and caregiver support. Last year, Congress reauthorized the funding for that program. When the Trump administration tried to hold up that funding earlier this year, I calle them out until they finally released it in September. For me, it’s about putting people over politics, and I hope that’s also true for my colleagues across the aisle.

Bipartisan progress is possible when Republicans are willing to work with Democrats to find solutions that benefit all Americans.

Working together is the only way to end this shutdown, to save Americans’ health care, and to have a functioning government.