Press Release
Statement by AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka on GOP Shutdown and Debt Ceiling
… Finally -- after more than two weeks of government shutdown, with hundreds of thousands of Americans out of work and billions of dollars in avoidable losses -- Republican leaders have stood down. While it is good news that we have … we all know that it should never have happened. No party or faction inside a party should hold our economy hostage to extract political gains. We commend President Obama, Majority Leader Reid, and the leadership of the Democratic party … standing firm and resisting extortion. Now that we have survived this self-inflicted catastrophe, perhaps we can move on to address urgent national priorities. We must pass comprehensive immigration reform, so that 11 million aspiring Americans …