As the federal government shutdown continues, I want to be very clear about what’s happening in Washington: Democrats are using federal workers and their families, servicemembers, and those who rely on critical benefits as pawns in a political game.

Today, I joined America Reports to discuss the patriotism of the thousands of Americans who are showing up to work every day—even though they don’t know when they’ll get their next paycheck. Republicans in the House voted to keep the government open. But Senate Democrats are refusing to work with us on a clean, commonsense bill, putting paychecks on pause and programs like SNAP at risk as they run out of funds.

We also discussed another serious issue that, just a few months ago, impacted us here in Florida’s 21st district: illegal immigrant drivers getting behind the wheel of commercial trucks. This week, a nationwide enforcement operation uncovered hundreds of illegal immigrants operating with improperly issued commercial driver’s licenses. This is unacceptable. We are seeing hundreds of drivers allowed on the roads who can’t tell the difference between a stop sign or a Cracker Barrel sign but they are being allowed to operate huge trucks on our roadways, resulting in American deaths.

These tragedies are preventable — and they’re the direct result of broken systems in failed Democrat states like California and Illinois that put politics ahead of public safety.

At the end of the day, it’s a difference in values. While Republicans continue fighting to keep the government running for the people who keep this country running, Democrats are focused on political theater. I have always been clear about my priorities—backing commonsense safety, defending workers, and protecting families.