Oklahoma Congressman Tom Cole says government shutdowns are a really bad idea

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Tom Cole has a message for his fellow Republicans in Congress who want to shut down the government to make a political point: Don’t do it. It’s a bad idea and nobody gets reelected by shutting down the government.

Cole, now in his 10^th term, speaks from experience. He’s lived through three shutdowns, and he said he’s never seen them work.

"Why people are attracted to this strategy that never works is beyond me," he said. "If you call a play three times and each team in the game has tried it and it’s failed, what makes you think it's gonna work next time?”

During an interview with The Oklahoman, Cole said there were no winners in a government shutdown.

“They are a terrible idea, and they never work,” he said. “They inconvenience the American people, and every day they go on, more people are inconvenienced.”

Whatever political point you're making, Cole said, is being made at the expense of the American people, and the minute the government is shut down, the issue changes.

“(The issue becomes) who shut down the government and why and when will they reopen the government again,” he said. “Every shutdown we’ve had has cost us money, inconvenienced the American people and not succeeded in its political objective.”

On Jan. 18, the House of Representatives approved a stopgap bill to fund the federal government through early March and avert a partial government shutdown. The measure passed 314-108, with 106 Republicans and two Democrats in opposition.

More: Congress approves funding extension, avoiding shutdown for the third time

And though the measure only buys Congress time until March, Cole said he was optimistic a full budget deal could be put together this year.

“We finally have gotten the struggle over government funding out of the hands of leadership on both sides and into the hands of appropriators,” he said.

A budget deal is possible this year, Cole said

After a top-line agreement on spending levels, the 12 main bills that fund the government are now being developed. Cole said committees are now working through the development process for each area of government spending.

He said four bills — those that cover veterans, military construction, transportation and housing and energy and water — are expected to be finished by March 1. The remaining eight should be finished by mid-March.

But even with those early dates, the Republican-controlled House continues to struggle with the budget. Earlier this year, new House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-Louisiana, said he would not pass any additional short-term continuing resolutions this year. Johnson has repeated that statement more than once. In addition, a clause in the measure — passed last year — which set the debt ceiling makes an automatic 1% cut to federal agencies’ budgets on May 1 if Congress hasn’t passed a full-year funding measure.

More: When Congress flirts with a government shutdown, student loan borrowers left in the lurch

An analysis by the Government Executive website indicated that the cuts would be about $73 billion, about 10% across-the-board.

Cole, however, said he remains optimistic.

“We have to be thoughtful and reasonable in how we do a give and take back and forth, so government can move ahead and be efficient and get the things done that need to be done,” he said.

Border security, immigration will continue to be a problem

Still, some issues, won’t be solved in an election year — for example, immigration reform.

In December, the Senate’s Republican whip, John Thune, said they were prepared to vote against advancing a supplemental national security package — totaling more than $100 billion — unless it included major changes to federal board policy.

Oklahoma Sen. James Lankford, who has led the negotiations for the GOP, said at the time he believed a deal could be put together. But Lankford's work has drawn the opposition from the some members of the Oklahoma Republican Party.

More: US Sen. Lankord faces backlash from Republican Party over potential border deal

Newly elected state Sen. Dusty Deevers, who represents the Lawton area, circulated a resolution on X — formerly Twitter — opposing Lankford's efforts. The resolution said the state GOP "strongly condemns (Sen.) James Lankford, and if to the extent he continues these actions, and calls upon him to cease and desist jeopardizing the security and liberty of the people of Oklahoma and of these United States."

Cole praised Lankford. He said Lankford was doing "heroic work" trying to put together a deal. But border security, Cole said, and immigration reform were not the same thing.

“There are really two issues here,” Cole said. “Border security is not the same thing as immigration reform. A lot of my Democratic friends simply want to legalize an open border. We have a whole list of border security laws, and the president has enormous authority.”

Cole said he understood why people wanted to come to the U.S. He said the country remains a draw for those in countries like North Korea or China.

“The rest of the world isn’t down on us,” Cole said. “More people want to come here. They don’t have an immigration crisis in China. The only people who want to move to China live in North Korea. They don’t have an immigration crisis in Russia. People (there) are moving out not moving in. But they sure as hell want to get to places like Europe and America.”

EDITORIAL: Lankford leadership in border efforts deserves applause, not censure

Cole said there were millions of people spilling into the country, and the influx was creating serious problems.

“People get here and they need services,” he said. “An open border also means a lot of drug trafficking, and it means a lot of human trafficking. You have to control the border to control those sorts of things.”

Cole said he believed congress could address problems with border security, but he said comprehensive immigration reform probably wouldn’t happen this year.

Optimism is high for a farm bill this year

While legislation addressing border security and immigration remain controversial, Cole said there was a good chance the country would see a new farm bill this year. The best way to do that, he said, was follow fellow Republican Frank Lucas.

“Frank Lucas has been very successful,” he said. “The farm bill, it’s pretty simple for me, we pretty much vote with Frank Lucas. He knows more about this policy than anybody in the United States Congress. He’s written a farm bill.”

Cole’s office, the congressman said, is going to be where Lucas is on farm issues.

“Every now and then one of our senators or some of our House people will vote against Lucas on a farm bill,” he said. “And it’s your vote and you have the right to do what you want, but I’m sorry you’re voting against the person that’s the most knowledgeable about Oklahoma agriculture we’ve probably ever had; that’s the most knowledgeable on national agriculture that this state has ever produced. Why in the world would you want to be at odds with Frank Lucas? Do you really think you know more about farm policy than Frank Lucas?”

More: 'I am very fortunate.' US Rep. Frank Lucas gets all clear six months after bull attack

No one in the Oklahoma delegation, Cole said, knows as much about agricultural issues as Lucas.

With the clock ticking on the current congressional session, Cole said he wanted to see a budget — carried in a series of budget bills and not a single, large piece of legislation — finalized before the end of the session.

He said issues such as national security, the completion of a farm bill and the reauthorization of the Federal Aviation Administration were the most important things on the agenda for the year. As for the summer — not much will happen, he said, because 2024 is an election year.

“This is not a year, where you’re gonna get major legislative things done,” he said. “Not when Republicans control the House and Democrats control the Senate. We’re not gonna be able to accomplish a lot of things we could until that is changed. And that’s up to the American people in November.”

This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: GOP Rep. Tom Cole: Stop trying to shut down the government