House Speaker Mike Johnson celebrated eight Senate Democrats agreeing to begin the process of reopening the government with allusions to Exodus and President Gerald Ford’s 1974 inaugural address. “After forty days of wandering in the wilderness and making the American people suffer needlessly, some Senate Democrats have finally stepped forward to end the pain,” he said Monday morning. “It appears to us this morning that our long national nightmare is finally coming to an end, and we’re grateful for that.” “As we said from the beginning, the people’s government cannot be held hostage to further anyone’s political agenda. That was never right, and shutting down the government never produces anything. It never has, if you study history-and so here we are,” Speaker Johnson said.

SPEAKER MIKE JOHNSON: I’m very thankful to see you all this morning. I’m thankful to welcome you to what appears to be the beginning of the end of the longest government shutdown in U.S. history-as shameful as that is. I don’t think it’s coincidental-you know how I think-but after forty days of wandering in the wilderness and making the American people suffer needlessly, some Senate Democrats have finally stepped forward to end the pain. It appears to us this morning that our long national nightmare is finally coming to an end, and we’re grateful for that. At least some Democrats now finally appear ready to do what Republicans, President Trump, and millions of hardworking American people have been asking them to do for weeks. As we said from the beginning, the people’s government cannot be held hostage to further anyone’s political agenda. That was never right, and shutting down the government never produces anything. It never has, if you study history-and so here we are.