WASHINGTON, Sept. 18 -- Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Florida, a member of the Senate Committee on Appropriations, issued the following statement after the Senate voted against proceeding to the House-passed minibus, which will serve as the vehicle to fund various agencies within the federal government, including the Defense Department:

"Time and again, we've heard my Democratic colleagues decry government shutdowns, yet their partisan obstruction today puts us squarely on that path.