Sen. Jim Justice Threw His Bulldog a Birthday Party In The Middle of the Government Shutdown

“I’m doing it because it’s Babydog’s birthday, and I love her to death.”

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United States Senator Jim Justice pets his English Bulldog, BabyDog. (Photo by Mattie Neretin/Sipa via AP Images)

The government has been shut down for more than two weeks with no end in sight. The Trump administration is trying to lay off thousands of federal workers. It’s also the sixth birthday of Sen. Jim Justice’s bulldog, Babydog.

Despite the dour mood around the Capitol, Justice’s office was in full celebration mode Wednesday, complete with birthday cakes and a line that wrapped around the fifth floor hallway of the Hart Senate Office Building for pictures with the senator and Babydog.

When asked about the optics of throwing a birthday party for a dog in the midst of a deadlocked and shutdown Congress, Justice posited that this might be the best time.