During CNN’s Election Night coverage on Tuesday, House Minority Leader Rep. Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) argued that the government shutdown is the fault of Republicans and they “refuse” to eliminate the filibuster to get around Democratic opposition in order to reopen the government and also said that he hopes that in the wake of that night’s elections, “Republicans will now realize that it’s something that they need to do to find the common ground necessary. Let’s reopen the government, let’s pass a spending agreement that makes life better for the American people,” and deal with health care and the cost of living.

Earlier in the interview, Jeffries said that “Donald Trump has spent the last few days saying to Republicans in the Senate, you have the power to reopen the government. They refuse to do it.”

At the end of the interview, Jeffries stated, “[A]s Democrats, our view is we want to find bipartisan common ground. We were elected to solve problems on behalf of the American people, and, hopefully, Republicans will now realize that it’s something that they need to do to find the common ground necessary. Let’s reopen the government, let’s pass a spending agreement that makes life better for the American people, and let’s address the healthcare crisis and the cost-of-living crisis that Republicans are making worse.”

Follow Ian Hanchett on Twitter @IanHanchett