1. United States
2. Letter

You were right; the President owns the shutdown. Sir, in 2011 and 2013, you were prolific on Fox News and social media platforms telling us that if the U.S. government had a shutdown it was a failure of the American President to bring people together to negotiate a solution to the budget debate in Congress. Then, we had a Democrat in the White House and a Democratic majority in the Senate. Shutdowns were averted then. But we had a shutdown during your first term—-which history books now record as the longest shutdown we have experienced in modern times. Now, we have another shutdown during your second term. The American people are not confused about who is to blame when a majority Republican House, a majority Republican Senate, and a Republican White House cannot produce a budget for the year, let alone a Continuing Resolution for a few weeks. This is a Republican failure that as you presciently indicated more than a decade ago falls squarely on the President. Then Congressional power of the purse has always required negotiation and compromise. I urge you and your Allie’s to return to the bargaining table in that spirit for the benefit of the American people before irreparable damage is done not only to individuals but also to our fiscal standing in the international community.