Copyright dailymail
Democrats won't vote to end the government shutdown unless planes are literally falling out of the sky, the White House warned Americans on Tuesday. Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said Democrats are making air travel unsafe by forcing air traffic controllers to go without pay through the longest government shutdown in US history. She urged just five Democrats in the Senate to join Republicans in voting for a 'clean continuing resolution' to extend funding for the government and make sure that Americans who control plane movements at US airports are paid going into the busiest travel season of the year. This week, federal workers with control centers are set to miss their second paycheck since the start of the shutdown. Responding to the Daily Mail's question at Tuesday's briefing, Leavitt would not comment on whether or not Americans should continue to fly into and out of US airports. But she did suggest that air travel is more unsafe during the shutdown. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said that starting next week, his department might be forced to shutdown US airspace and ground flights in certain parts of the country amid the gap in funding. He cited air traffic controller staffing shortages being the main reason for such a drastic action. 'If you bring us to a week from today, Democrats, you will see mass chaos,' Duffy said during an interview on Tuesday. 'You may see us close certain parts of the airspace because we just cannot manage it because we don't have the air traffic controllers.' The secretary insisted this would all be in the pursuit of prioritizing public safety – but admitted it would lead to nationwide delays, flight cancellations and even full ground stops. Air traffic controller absences have skyrocketed since the shutdown began on October 1. Ins some New York-area airports, absences have reach more than 80 percent of the normal workforce. On Sunday alone, 5,000 flights were delayed as nearly half of all air traffic control facilities being understaffed. Meanwhile, last month a Democratic staffer was quoted in a CNN report saying that 'short of planes falling out of the sky' the party would not agree to reopen the government. Leavitt called back to this reporting at Tuesday's briefing. 'That is a reckless and dangerous statement from someone who didn't want to put their name on that statement, but we know it came from the Democrat Party,' Leavitt lamented. 'And I think we're very clear we want to reopen the government so we can resume travel in the safest and most efficient way possible, especially as we head into the busiest travel season of the [year].' She did not say if the administration is encouraging Americans to use alternative modes of transportation to flying starting next week. 'The administration is encouraging Democrats to reopen the federal government so this chaos and disruption to our air traffic control system in the United States of America stops. It is ridiculous that we have even gotten to this place and that the Democrats have continued to shut down the government,' Leavitt said. She added that for '35 days our air traffic controllers continue to work unpaid.' Trump's press secretary noted that airlines are 'begging' Democrats to reopen the government and stop the chaos at airports ahead of the holidays. On Wednesday the government shutdown will make history as the longest in the US on record.
