House Speaker Mike Johnson sparred with a Fox News reporter when asked a question about the ongoing government shutdown wreaking havoc on airlines across the country.
Fox News’ Chad Pergram pressed Johnson about not being on the same page as Senate Majority Leader John Thune. Pergram asserted that Thune was the one behind the shutdown while Johnson has said time and again that the Democrats are to blame.
“Mr. Speaker, you and John Thune are not on the same page. You came out and criticized Democrats,” Pergram said. “He was the engineer behind this. Why are you not on the same page, and are you not extending the shutdown if you were to accept what the Senate had passed, this could end tonight, and the TSA lines would shrink.”
Johnson, unsurprisingly, disagreed with Pergram’s assessment.
“I wouldn’t call John Thune the engineer of this,” Johnson said. “Chuck Schumer and the Democrats in the Senate have forced this upon the Senate. I have to protect the House-“
At this point, Pergram stepped back in to press his initial question. Johnson, not enjoying the interruption, stopped the reporter in his tracks and continued with his talking points.
“Let me answer the question, Chad,” Johnson said. “And I have to protect the American people. That’s our responsibility. Our colleagues on this side understand this is not a game. We are not playing their games.”
He continued about the Democrats: “These people want open borders and they want criminal illegal aliens in the country. They do not want to enforce the law, they want to literally defund. You just read it in the bill here. They want to give zero dollars to enforcing federal immigration laws and keeping the borders secure.”
Since Johnson was pressed by the Fox News reporter, President Trump has directed the Department of Homeland Security to pay TSA agents in hopes that it lessens the burden on airports as the shutdown persists.
“If Democrats in the Congress will not act to honor the service of our TSA officers, who are now performing their critical public safety responsibilities without knowing whether they will be able to buy food for their families or pay their rent, then my Administration will take action,” Trump said in a presidential memo. “As President of the United States, I have determined that these circumstances constitute an emergency situation compromising the Nation’s security.”
