Democrats, Republicans and President Trump are "failing to govern" amid the ongoing government shutdown, former Defense Secretary Leon Panetta said on Wednesday during Axios' Future of Defense Summit.
Why it matters: Panetta warned that defense spending can't depend on a patchwork of continuing resolutions, and that the funding gap signals to adversaries globally that "democracy is not working."
- "Pure and simple, it sends a message of weakness," Panetta told Axios' Colin Demarest in Washington, D.C.
- "I know we're talking about the future of defense, but in a democracy, you're not going to have a strong defense without strong government."
- Panetta said the U.S. has "enemies that are out to undermine our democracy," naming China, Russia and North Korea in particular.
Context: The government shutdown began on Oct. 1 and could permanently reshape the federal workforce.
Zoom in: The responsibility of governing is "why people elect members of Congress," he added.
- "They don't elect them to come back here and engage in trench warfare. They elect people to go to Washington to govern and make decisions. And if we fail to do that, that sends a fundamental message of weakness to all of our adversaries that democracy is not working."
Catch up quick: Panetta served as the 23rd defense secretary from July 2011 to February 2013 under former President Obama.
- He previously served as the director of the Central Intelligence Agency.
Go deeper: Exclusive: Hegseth's military speech a "waste of time," Panetta says
