Sen. James Lankford, a U.S. Senator from Oklahoma, posted a series of tweets on October 2, 2025, criticizing Democratic lawmakers for their approach to government spending and the ongoing government shutdown.
In his first post at 14:56 UTC, Lankford questioned the scale of proposed spending increases by Democrats, stating: “My Democrat colleagues are asking for a $1.5 trillion increase in spending to keep our government open for seven weeks. Let me ask this simple question: if you spend $1 million a day, how long would it take you to spend $1 trillion? Answer: ~2,740 years @SenateDems want us to”.
Later that day at 16:03 UTC, he commented on the closure of the Capitol building amid the shutdown: “It’s noon on Thursday and the Capitol is closed to visitors all because @SenSchumer and the Democrats shut our government down.”
In a subsequent tweet at 19:36 UTC, Lankford further criticized Democratic actions during the shutdown: “This shutdown is dumb. All Democrats are doing is hurting the American people to appeal to their far-left base.”
Government shutdowns occur when Congress fails to pass funding legislation needed for federal agencies and operations. These events can result in closures of public facilities such as national parks and visitor centers in Washington D.C., including restricted access to buildings like the U.S. Capitol. During previous shutdowns, political disagreements over budget priorities have often led to similar impasses between parties.
