Editor’s note: This guest column is the opinion of the author and not necessarily that of the Augusta Press or its staff.
Jon Ossoff could move to end this shutdown today if he wanted to. Instead, he’s bending the knee to Chuck Schumer and prioritizing illegal immigrants over hardworking Georgians.
It’s harming us at every turn.
If this shutdown lasts one month, Georgia will lose $2 billion and 1,400 workers will find themselves unemployed. Those aren’t just numbers – those are small businesses that are closing their doors, companies laying off workers, contracts ending, and new businesses that will never get off the ground due to Washington Democrats’ incompetence.
Every statewide industry is touched by this Schumer Shutdown calamity, but among those most directly impacted are our more than 100,000 federal employees. These employees have either been furloughed or are working without pay, unsure if and when their next paycheck will come that puts food on the table and lights their homes.
The same can be said for our troops, who only by the bold leadership of President Donald Trump were able to receive full paychecks on October 15th. But their pay for the end of the month hangs in limbo, which is creating uncertainty for the men and women who dedicate their lives to protecting our freedoms. It’s unacceptable that Democrats like Jon Ossoff are willing to trade the military’s pay checks for a shot at getting free, taxpayer-funded health care for illegal immigrants, especially while many of those same Democrats who instigated this shutdown continue to cash paychecks.
They’re spitting in the face of our military servicemembers. It’s unAmerican, indefensible, and flat out disgraceful.
Unfortunately, those same three words can be used to describe Ossoff’s repeated votes to keep the government closed. In past federal funding battles, Ossoff has released statements saying, “the only path forward was bipartisanship.” Where is the man who wrote those words today? Likely prepping his sign for a No Kings rally instead of working across the aisle to make sure our country has the funds it needs to continue paying for necessary programs.
He has no answers for the families on WIC and SNAP who are concerned that their nutrition benefits will run out. He has no answers for the employees who have lost their jobs, some for good. He has no answers for farmers, who are missing out on $531 million in Hurricane Helene relief due to his inaction. And, he has no answer for why he refuses to help reopen the government, other than to parrot Chuck Schumer’s lie that this is about health care.
It’s not about health care for U.S. citizens. It’s about “sticking it” to Trump, and in the process, “sticking it” to the American people. Ossoff and Schumer are trying to out anti-Trump AOC, and they don’t care how many Georgians they stomp on in the process.
Rep. Buddy Carter, R-GA, 1st Congressional District
