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From inside the White House to the banners plastered on government websites, Donald Trump and administration officials are explicitly blaming Democratic members of Congress for the federal shutdown.
Watchdog groups say the statements are in apparent defiance of ethics laws that prohibit political attacks and campaigning from inside federal facilities — which the president has continued to do since entering office without facing any consequences.
“The Radical Left in Congress shut down the government,” according to a large pop-up message and a bright red banner on the Department of Housing and Urban Development’s website.
Another message at the top of the Department of Justice website says “Democrats have shut down the government.”
“Due to the Democrat-led shutdown, website updates will be limited until full operations resume,” according to a red banner on the State Department’s website.
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