Friday, April 8, 2011 6:20 pm

Washington, D.C. (Friday, April 8, 2011) — Today, U.S. Representative Diane Black (R-TN), released the following statement on the potential government shutdown that would start at 12:01 a.m. Saturday, April 9, 2011:

"After a week of negotiations between Senate and House leadership, no agreement has been reached and it appears that the Senate has refused to join House Republicans in our commitment to cut spending and getting our fiscal house in order.  Instead, the White House and the Senate Democrats have brought us to the brink of government shutdown instead of getting serious about reducing spending.

"From the beginning of this debate, I and my colleagues in the House have been clear—the goal was not to shut down the government, but to get the biggest spending cut possible.  So yesterday, House Republicans passed a bill to keep the government open for one more week, while cutting $12 billion.  That bill also ensured that members of the armed forces receive pay in the event of a government shutdown.  Unfortunately, the Democrat-controlled Senate has refused to take up the bill and the president threatened a veto, calling the bill 'a distraction.'

"Our brave men and women in uniform are never 'a distraction,' and refusing to ensure military families receive their pay is absolutely shameful.  That is why I will donate my salary for the length of a government shutdown to the Wounded Warrior Project.

"It is still my hope that we can keep the government open so my colleagues and I can continue making significant cuts to spending.  While I am focused on this current fight for billions in cuts over the next six months, I am looking toward the next fight that may in fact be bigger: the debate over the budget for the entire Fiscal Year 2012 and the trillions in cuts that Chairman Paul Ryan has proposed.  America is on the edge of a fiscal cliff, and the time is now to get our spending under control.

"In the event of a shutdown, my offices in Tennessee and Washington, D.C. will remain open to handle constituent concerns.   Information is available on my website www.black.house.gov about essential government services during the possible government shutdown."