AFGE, largest federal workers' union, calls for end to shutdown, putting pressure on Democrats

AFGE, the nation’s largest union representing federal workers is calling for lawmakers to pass a short-term spending measure to end the government shutdown immediately.

WASHINGTON — The country’s largest union representing federal workers is calling for lawmakers to pass a short-term spending measure to immediately end the government shutdown, urging Democrats to abandon their current position and join Republicans in supporting a stopgap solution.

“Both political parties have made their point, and still there is no clear end in sight,” American Federation of Government Employees President Everett Kelley wrote in a statement first shared with NBC News. “It’s time to pass a clean continuing resolution and end this shutdown today. No half measures, and no gamesmanship.”

The statement could increase pressure on Democrats to budge from their stance. Senate Democrats have insisted that they won’t vote to reopen the government without a commitment from Republicans and President Donald Trump on extending health care subsidies through the Affordable Care Act, which are set to expire at the end of the year. Without them, health insurance premiums on Obamacare markets will skyrocket for many individuals and families.

AFGE is calling on Congress to pass a clean continuing resolution.Bill Clark / CQ-Roll Call via Getty Images file“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, stressing there should be a “resolution that allows continued debate on larger issues” like growing costs and a dysfunctional federal funding process in Congress.

“Because when the folks who serve this country are standing in line for food banks after missing a second paycheck because of this shutdown, they aren’t looking for partisan spin,” he added. “They’re looking for the wages they earned. The fact that they’re being cheated out of it is a national disgrace.”