CHAPEL HILL – In an interview with Ron Stutts on Friday morning, Governor Pat McCrory expressed dissatisfaction with the 16-day government shutdown.

“I thought it was absolutely ridiculous and got us nowhere,” he said.

McCrory said the shutdown happened because of a lack of discussion between the legislature and the White House, something he thinks should have been addressed much earlier.

“This is where we didn’t have discussions–which we should have–between the White House and the House and the Senate,” McCrory said. ‘They should have gotten a room, locked themselves up and not come out of the room until they came out with a deal.”

The 16-day government shutdown affected many North Carolinians, particularly government employees.

“We had over 3,000 state employees that were furloughed,” McCrory said. “And now its ironic–those that were furloughed will probably still be paid, while other state employees who actually worked didn’t have time off–but you know it just causes nothing but problems.”

In January a similar stalemate may happen between the Democrats and the Republicans in Congress. McCrory says he hopes the two parties can work together to avoid a repeat.

“I request the President to lead that effort,” he says, “and get (the) three leaders–the Senate leader, the House leader, and the President–in a room. And they ought to be doing that right now in preparation for January.”

Click here to listen to the full interview.

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