A GOP congressman from Georgia is donating his salary while the federal government is shut down to charity.
In a letter to the chief administrative officer of Congress, U.S. Rep. Rick Allen (R-12) is asking his salary be withheld until the shutdown is over:
Allen represents much of east Georgia, including Augusta, Statesboro, Dublin and Vidalia.
The federal government shut down at the stroke of midnight Friday, halting all but the most essential operations and marring the one-year anniversary of President Donald Trump's inauguration.
Last-minute negotiations crumbled as Senate Democrats blocked a four-week stopgap extension in a late-night vote, causing the fourth government shutdown in a quarter century. Behind the scenes, however, leading Republicans and Democrats were trying to work out a compromise to avert a lengthy shutdown.
Republicans branded the confrontation a "Schumer shutdown" and argued that Democrats were harming fellow Americans to protect "illegal immigrants." Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer said a "Trump shutdown" was more accurate.