Federal lawmakers who represent the local area have mixed feelings on who is to blame for a federal government shutdown that came into effect at the start of Saturday.

Their statements indicate that Republicans and Democrats were divided over how to proceed.

The Senate is negotiating a short-term funding bill that is slated to go up for vote again at noon today.

Lawmakers including U.S. Sen. Bob Casey, D-Pa., U.S. Sen. Pat Toomey, R-Pa., and U.S. Rep. Glenn Thompson, R-Pa., were vocal on who they felt were at fault.

Toomey believes the reason the Senate failed to vote in favor of a funding bill Friday night was political.

“In a transparent political ploy, Senate Democrats prioritized amnesty for select illegal immigrants over governing, supporting our military, and providing health insurance to poor and middle-income children,” said Toomey.

Regarding Friday’s vote, Toomey said the “vote by Senate Democrats is not rooted in principle or even ideology—they openly support every provision in the bill they voted against—rather it is a crass political calculation meant to appease the extreme left wing of their party. This is a mess that the Senate Democrats created, holding the entire country hostage because of an immigration issue that does not fully materialize until March.”

He is optimistic in the possibility of a quick end to the shutdown.

“It is my hope that cooler heads prevail and a deal to keep the government open can be reached in short order,” said Toomey.

Casey also felt the failure to pass a funding bill was political — but he indicated it was a move by Republicans that created the stalemate.

“Republicans who control Congress and President Trump have provoked a government shutdown by refusing to work in a bipartisan way on a funding agreement that protects the middle class, retiree pensioners and 800,000 people who receive health care through community health centers,” said Casey.

“The Republican funding plan shortchanges our veterans, community health centers, infants and mothers who receive home visitations, retired coal miners and other Pennsylvania workers and those dealing with the opioid crisis,” he added.

Casey believes there is a way to make a plan that Democrats and Republicans can be happy with — if Republicans would agree.

“There are bipartisan agreements in place that can help Pennsylvania families, but Republicans gave in to the extreme right wing of their party and walked away,” he said. “I was not elected to genuflect to the demands of extreme House Republicans. I have an obligation to fight for the millions of families left out of this bill.”

Casey questioned the priorities of his fellow senators.

“For over 100 days, Republicans didn’t do a damn thing for kids impacted by the lapse in reauthorization of the Children’s House Insurance Program (CHIP),” he said. “Instead, Republicans in Washington spent months working to pass massive tax cuts for their big corporate donors. Now all of a sudden they pretend like they care? If they truly cared for children like they cared for big corporations then the CHIP extension would be permanent.

“Republicans should immediately reopen the government so that we can stay in session until we reach a commonsense agreement,” said Casey.

From the standpoint of the House, Thompson stood beside his Republican counterparts in the Senate.

“I find it troubling that a majority of the Senate Democrats have chosen to severely jeopardize our military readiness, shut down essential government operations and eliminate health care coverage for low-income children, while setting an arbitrary deadline to address the DACA issue,” said Thompson.

“I maintain that we must achieve comprehensive immigration reform, which includes providing certainty on the status of those brought here as children, but a government shutdown is not the way to achieve this policy goal,” he continued. “I have been working toward a bipartisan agreement to protect the fate of the ‘Dreamers’ and to ensure our borders are secure for the safety of all Americans.

Thompson talked about how his offices will be impacted by the shutdown, which has many government employees staying at home starting today.

“In accordance with the law, my Bellefonte and Titusville district offices will be closed and many of my staff members will be furloughed for the duration of any budget impasse,” said Thompson. “I will remain in Washington working to get this impasse resolved. It is my hope that cooler heads will prevail and we can quickly find a resolution to reopen the federal government.”