The Signal editorial board has never been more factually incorrect than they were in their attempts to lay blame for the recent government shutdown at the feet of Democrats (“ICYMI: Democrats Refuse to Pay Federal Workers,” Jan. 27).
Democrats passed at least 10 federal funding bills before Republicans even thought to write and vote on their own. Specifically, bills HR 21, 264, 265, 266, 267, 268, 648, H J Res 1 and more. All passed in the House in the early days of the 2019 session with Rep. Katie Hill voting aye on each one.
All that was required was for Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell to take those House bills up in the Senate at any time and the shutdown would have been over. Instead, Republicans, at the direction of President Trump, sat on those bills for 35 days, holding federal workers’ paychecks hostage as leverage for his border wall. For more than a month, Republicans and Republicans alone inflicted real damage on the livelihoods of Americans. And that damage was felt close to home, affecting air traffic controllers who work in Palmdale, many of whom live in Santa Clarita.
Additionally, the tweets from Rep. Dan Crenshaw that The Signal’s editorial cited were in reference to “motions to recommit” (a vote to amend a bill), NOT the final vote. Crenshaw lied about the nature of Democrat “no” votes and The Signal didn’t bother to fact-check his claims. The Signal’s editorial board then used those false claims to justify smearing Democrats and Hill.
At the very least, The Signal’s editorial board owes readers a correction for the failure to fact-check claims made on Twitter, and an apology to Rep. Hill for misrepresenting her voting record. And, perhaps in the future, the board should not be so eager to propagate disinformation and help Republicans gaslight citizens about their shameful behavior.
Lee Uber
Valencia
