US House speaker blames Democrats as government shutdown enters 29th day

WASHINGTON

US House Speaker Mike Johnson blamed Democrats on Wednesday for prolonging the government shutdown, now in its 29th day, after the Senate failed again to advance a Republican-backed funding bill.

"It's day 29 of the Democrats’ shutdown, and things are getting really tough for the American people," Johnson told reporters at the Capitol.

Johnson's remarks came a day after the upper chamber failed to advance a Republican-backed funding bill to end the shutdown for a 13th time.

He said Democrats have "turned their backs on more and more hard-working American families to prolong their pain."

Johnson said House Republicans had already done their part by passing a funding measure on Sept. 19, accusing Senate Democrats of repeatedly blocking efforts to end the stalemate.

He defended his party’s approach, calling the Republican proposal a “clean, simple bill” and insisting that responsibility for the shutdown rests with Democrats.

"No one can say that this is in any way the fault of Republicans," he said.

"Republicans cannot wave a wand and reopen the government on our own. We must have a handful of centrist Democrats in the Senate, and any Democrat suggesting otherwise knows exactly what they're doing, and they insult the intelligence of the American people," he added.

The shutdown, the second-longest in US history, began Oct. 1 after a breakdown in negotiations on federal spending priorities. Thousands of federal workers have since been furloughed, or working without pay, while government services have been curtailed or suspended.