Largest Federal Workers Union Urges Dems to Cave on Government Shutdown, Revealing Cracks in Coalition

The nation’s largest federal workers’ union, the American Federation of Government Employees, is urging Democrats to concede the government shutdown fight and vote to reopen the government, revealing a significant fracture in the Democratic coalition as the shutdown nears the one-month mark.

The shutdown began 27 days ago after Democrats refused to back a clean government funding bill, demanding instead that Republicans extend temporary Obamacare subsidies that are set to expire at the end of the year. But AFGE, a major ally to the Democratic party which represents 820,000 federal and D.C. government workers, now says it’s time for the party to give up on its demands.

“It’s time to pass a clean continuing resolution and end this shutdown today. No half measures, and no gamesmanship,” AFGE President Everett Kelley said in a Monday statement provided to NBC News.

“It’s time for our leaders to start focusing on how to solve problems for the American people, rather than on who is going to get the blame for a shutdown that Americans dislike,” Kelley said.

The union is also demanding that all federal workers should not only be returned to work as soon as possible, but also receive back pay, including workers who were furloughed or considered essential throughout the shutdown and continued to work without pay.

“These are patriotic Americans – parents, caregivers, and veterans – forced to work without pay while struggling to cover rent, groceries, gas and medicine because of political disagreements in Washington. That is unacceptable,” the statement reads.

A House-passed continuing resolution has now been voted down in the Senate twelve times. Only three Senate Democrats — John Fetterman (D., Pa.), Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.), and Angus King  (I., Maine) — have voted with Republicans to pass the resolution. If Democrats don’t get on board with the current continuing resolution by the time the legislation expires on November 21, the House will be forced to pass a new version.

“It’s long past time for our leaders to put aside partisan politics and embrace responsible government. A strong America requires a functioning government — one that pays its bills, honors its commitments, and treats its workforce with respect by paying them on time,” Kelly said.

Republicans took the opportunity to come down on Democrats in light of the AFGE’s statement.

“Even a union that backed Kamala Harris admits it: Democrats caused this shutdown. Pass the clean CR. Reopen the government!” Senator Jim Banks (R., Ind.) said in a post.

Democratic Senator Chris Van Hollen (D., Md.), however, shot back, and doubled down on the Democrats commitment to lower health care costs.

“I’m committed to immediately reopening the government in a responsible way that prevents the illegal budget actions Trump has taken — including against our federal workers — and stops Americans’ health care costs from exploding,” Van Hollen told HuffPost. “In the meantime I’m also working to immediately pay all our federal employees and prevent this Administration’s mass firings … Donald Trump should spend less time traveling around the world, and more time negotiating an end to his shutdown.”

The statement from AFGE is not the first sign that cracks are emerging within the Democratic coalition: Representative Jared Golden of Maine, the lone House Democrat to vote in favor of the existing continuing resolution, blamed his party’s progressive wing for pursuing what he views as a misguided shutdown strategy in a weekend interview with the Wall Street Journal. Golden cast blame on the left-wing group Indivisible and progressive leaders such as Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Senator Bernie Sanders for moving the party in the wrong direction.

“What they’re doing is wrong,” Golden said.