WASHINGTON, DC - After the Senate passed legislation to suspend the nation's debt ceiling until May, Mary Kay Henry, President of the Service Employees International Union (SEIU), issued the following statement:

Today's vote in the Senate is the right short-term fix to a conflict that never should have arisen. Hopefully, this vote will signal an end to extremists in the House using the United States' financial standing in the world as a bargaining chip in their quest to gut Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security. The debt ceiling should never have been linked to budget negotiations in the first place and we are pleased that the debate over how to avoid sequestration and protect vital services can now move ahead without this unnecessary distraction."

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