GOP Congressman: Let's Tackle Shutdown, Debt Ceiling At Same Time

Congress could kill two birds with one stone by ending the government shutdown and raising the debt ceiling all at once, a Republican congressman from New York said Wednesday.

"There is a strong possibility, if [Senate Democrats] were willing to sit down and listen to us, that we would put a package together and solve the problems at once: stop the government shutdown and deal with the debt ceiling," Rep. Michael Grimm said on CNN's "New Day."

The federal government enters Day Two of its shutdown after the Republican-led House tried but failed to pass a piecemeal funding plan Tuesday night to pay for the District of Columbia, veterans affairs and national parks.

Even though it fell short of the required two-thirds vote, it would have had no future in the Democratic-led Senate anyway, and the White House had already promised a veto.

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