House Speaker Mike Johnson Blames Democrats for Shutdown, Accuses Them of Pushing $200 Billion in Benefits for Illegal Immigrants

House Speaker Mike Johnson on Monday placed full responsibility for the ongoing government shutdown on congressional Democrats, accusing them of refusing to negotiate while demanding billions in new spending for illegal immigrants and foreign aid.

Speaking from Capitol Hill, Johnson painted a grim picture of the situation as the partial shutdown stretched into its 27th day, making it one of the longest in U.S. history. The Louisiana Republican said the closure was inflicting “real and lasting pain” on working Americans, including federal employees, service members, and their families.

“It’s been almost a full month since the Democrats shut down the government,” Johnson said. “The pain being felt by hardworking people around the country is very real — and it gets worse with every passing day.”

Johnson noted that roughly 1.4 million federal workers had missed a full paycheck the previous week, including thousands of essential employees still reporting for duty without pay.

“These are people keeping our country safe — TSA officers, air traffic controllers, Border Patrol agents, and of course, our troops,” Johnson said. “Now, many of their families are at real risk of missing the paycheck at the end of this month.”

The Speaker praised President Donald Trump and his administration for “doing everything possible” to find alternative funding within federal agencies, but warned that such efforts could not continue indefinitely.

“The Trump administration has bent over backwards to find temporary funding sources, but with every passing day, it becomes more challenging,” he said.

‘Democrats Are Keeping the Government Closed’

Johnson pushed back on media claims that Republicans were responsible for the standoff, arguing that his caucus had voted repeatedly to reopen the government.

“Every Republican in Congress wants to stop this madness,” he said. “We have voted more than a dozen times to reopen the government. But the simple math is that we can’t do it alone. You need 60 votes in the Senate, and we only have 53 Republicans. We need Democrats to help.”

According to Johnson, Senate Democrats have voted 12 times to block efforts to fund the government, effectively prolonging the shutdown.

“They are the ones voting to keep it closed,” Johnson declared. “And now they’re trying to distract the American people from the truth.”

To drive home his point, Johnson displayed a chart outlining what he described as the Democrats’ “nonnegotiable demands.”

Johnson’s ‘Four Simple Facts’

Johnson laid out four key points to explain the Republican position:

1. Democrats’ votes are required to reopen the government.

2. They have refused to provide those votes.

3. Their conditions for reopening the government are “radical and unacceptable.”

4. Republicans cannot support the demands because they violate core fiscal principles.

He accused Senate Democrats of attaching a long list of partisan spending priorities to the funding bill — including massive expansions of federal healthcare benefits to illegal immigrants.

“They’ve put this in writing — $200 billion in health benefits for illegal aliens and noncitizens, all paid for by U.S. taxpayers,” Johnson said.

He further alleged that the Democratic proposal includes billions in foreign aid programs, funding for “left-leaning news organizations,” and deep cuts to rural hospitals, which he said would devastate small-town healthcare.

“They want to give away taxpayer money to foreign countries while cutting $50 billion from rural hospitals that Americans depend on,” Johnson charged. “We will not do those things — and they know it.”

A Political Standoff with High Stakes

The Speaker’s remarks came as negotiations between the White House and congressional leaders remained at an impasse. President Trump has vowed not to sign any spending measure that includes the Democrats’ demands, while Democrats have refused to move forward without expanded social and healthcare spending.

Economists estimate that the shutdown has already cost taxpayers more than $8 billion in lost productivity, delayed services, and administrative costs.

While Democrats argue that the shutdown stems from Republican inflexibility, Johnson said the blame squarely rests on Democratic leadership, particularly Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer.

“They’re holding the government hostage to advance their far-left agenda,” Johnson said. “This is not about helping Americans. It’s about forcing through radical policies that the public never voted for.”

The Political Fallout

The stalemate has begun to ripple across the country. Federal workers have staged protests in several major cities, while military families have expressed concern about delayed paychecks.

Still, Johnson insisted that Republicans are standing firm out of principle — not politics.

“We can’t let Washington get away with wasteful spending while American families are struggling,” he said. “Democrats want to pretend this is about compassion. But what’s compassionate about sending billions overseas while Americans can’t pay their bills?”

Johnson ended his remarks with a direct appeal to Democrats to “do the right thing.”

“We’re ready to vote today,” he said. “The only thing standing between the American people and a functioning government is Democratic obstruction.”

As the shutdown continues with no immediate resolution in sight, Johnson’s message signals that Republicans intend to frame the battle as a fight against what they call “fiscal recklessness and open-border spending.”

Whether that argument resonates with voters — or backfires amid mounting public frustration — remains to be seen.