‘Congress spent all of the money.’ Kentucky Republicans blast new spending package
Two Kentucky Republicans made clear their disdain for Congress’ $2.3 trillion spending package, which included COVID-19 relief funding, approved late Monday night.
The bill, which passed the Senate just before midnight and avoided a government shutdown, was nearly 5,600 pages in length. The legislation was a compilation of spending bills that included $900 billion for COVID-19 aid, $740.5 billion in defense spending and $664.5 billion for domestic programs.
Sen. Rand Paul and Rep. Thomas Massie, who represents the 4th District that stretches across northern Kentucky, were outraged over the spending.
“The coffers are bare,” Paul said on Twitter Monday. “We have no rainy day fund. We have no savings account. Congress has spent all of the money. Congress spent all of the money a long time ago.” There was no mention initially of the tax cuts that Paul backed in 2017. Those tax cuts reduced revenues available to Congress and helped significantly increase the national deficit. But the pre-COVID debt also can be blamed on failure to cut spending.
Paul was seemingly displeased with every aspect of the new legislation, including the COVID-19 relief package, which will send $600 checks to most Americans and provide supplemental unemployment of $300 a week for 11 weeks.
He again blamed economic problems on what he called unnecessary local and state restrictions on businesses and closed schools.
“The answer is not printing up and distributing ‘free money’ to everyone,” Paul said. “The answer is immediately opening the economy.”
This is the second time the federal government has approved stimulus checks to U.S. residents and the first since the CARES Act was passed in late March. That bill sent $1,200 checks to qualifying residents.
Paul said on the Senate floor that spending so much money was “quackery,” and added that many of his fellow Republicans were “practicing the quackery themselves.”
Meanwhile, Massie said the bill wasn’t giving enough relief to U.S. residents if it would also contribute millions of dollars to other countries. Massie specifically called attention to $700 million for Sudan in the bill.
“Most of my colleagues will vote for this 5000+ page bill without even knowing this is in it,” Massie said in a tweet. Massie also griped that the bill was way too long for representatives to read before voting.
Both Massie and Paul voted no on the package. Paul was one of just six senators to vote against the bill. There were 92 votes in favor of passing the bill. All six votes against the bill came from Republican senators.
The bill was divided into two parts when it went through the House of Representatives. Massie was one of 85 representatives to vote against part one. There were 327 votes in favor of that portion. He was one of 53 to vote no on part two. There were 359 votes in favor of part two.
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell’s comments after the spending package was passed didn’t strike the same tone. He focused on the COVID-19 relief in the bill.
“The American people can rest assured that more help is on the way, immediately,” McConnell said in a tweet late Monday night. He backed the bill after months of criticism for not taking action and just two weeks before two Georgia Senate runoff elections will likely determine if he remains majority leader. Candidates had faced questions about Congress’ inability to deliver additional aid.
McConnell’s office also said late Monday night that the funding bills delivered “necessary resources to provide for our national defense, continue important federal programs, and benefit Kentucky families and communities.”
This story was originally published December 22, 2020 at 10:19 AM.