Huizenga’s office confirms Scotland delegation visit during partial government shutdown

EDITOR'S NOTE: The following story has been republished with permission from Michigan Advance.

By Ben Solis
Michigan Advance

Official congressional delegations to other nations are typically cancelled even during partial government shutdowns, much like the one the federal government is facing due to its inability to fund the Department of Homeland Security — but that didn’t stop the Republican Main Street Caucus from flying to Scotland.

Among those pictured was Michigan’s U.S. Rep. Bill Huizenga of Holland Township.

Huizenga’s spokesman Brian Patrick told Michigan Advance that the congressman was indeed in Scotland and that it was “a long-planned, House Ethics-approved mission to strengthen our ties with allies and collaborate with U.S. officials, foreign dignitaries, and U.S. companies in the region.”

The rabble-rousing TMZ pop-news outlet put out an open call for photos of congressional lawmakers taking trips while the U.S. House of Representatives and the Senate continue to fight over funding DHS, with Immigration and Customs Enforcement funding being the main sticking point.

TMZ was given a photo of what appeared to be the Republican Main Street Caucus in a tour group visiting Scotland’s Edinburgh Castle.

Semafor, a national political news and analysis outlet, positively identified members of the photo as being with the Main Street Caucus.

Later, an MS NOW reporter identified Huizenga in the photo, leading the Advance to ask the Michigan congressman’s office for a comment.

Patrick later confirmed that Huizenga was in Scotland.

According to reporting from The Hill, cancelling congressional delegations, known in D.C. speak as a CODEL, is the standard operating procedure during a shutdown of a major agency much like the Department of Homeland Security.

Of note, U.S. House Speaker Mike Johnson of Louisiana canceled a trip to the Munich Security Conference in mid-February, although Democrats, including Gov. Gretchen Whitmer and U.S. Sen. Elissa Slotkin, still attended on their own.

Patrick told the Advance that Huizenga has now voted four times to fully fund DHS and “we cannot allow Senate Democrats to paralyze our national security.”

Also featured in the photo from Edinburgh Castle were Virginia Rep. John McGuire, Wisconsin Rep. Derrick Van Orden, and North Carolina Rep. David Rouzer, TMZ reported and Semafor reported.

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