WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) released the following statement on his vote against cloture on the motion to proceed to H.R. 240:


"I cast my vote against taking up this bill because it plays games with the Department of Homeland Security at a time when we need all hands on deck to keep America safe. It’s irresponsible and dangerous for Republicans to risk a partial shutdown to score political points at the expense of immigrant families."


"Senator McConnell should allow a vote on a clean bill to fund the Department of Homeland Security ASAP. That bill is ready to go right now and it’s up to him to give senators a chance to vote on it. But the bottom line is that if Republicans continue holding government agencies hostage for ideas they know aren’t going anywhere, Congress is in for a rough two years. I understand that Republicans are upset about the Presidents immigration policy, but it's just crazy for them to attach anti-immigration riders to the funding for protecting America from terrorist attacks."


Last week, Murphy gave a speech calling on Senate Republicans to pass a clean, bipartisan bill to fund the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) for the remainder of the fiscal year. Murphy highlighted the importance of marshalling collective resources for the DHS to defend our nation against terrorism, and also stressed the fact that DHS funding should not be tied to divisive political issues that could jeopardize this critical funding.