OP ED: U.S. Rep Andrew Clyde: A Week of Radical Democratic Party Legislation

Friends, last week we once again saw unprecedented power grabs by the radical Democrats.

First, we saw the passage of H.R. 5, the “non-equality” Equality Act, which would provide preferential rights to some people at the expense of the rights of others, especially our religious communities. Second, we saw the passage of H.R. 1319, which I refer to as the “Payoff to Progressives Act.”

This so-called “stimulus package” includes a $50 million payoff to Planned Parenthood, $140 million for a costly transit project in Silicon Valley, and up to $21,000 for federal employees who have kids out of school. As I said on Friday, this legislation is so full of pork, Speaker Pelosi should consider opening up a barbecue shop!

Just two months into the Biden presidency, the Democrats have made clear that radical progressive causes will be the order of the day for at least the next two years.

Democrats made it crystal clear last week that they have no problem spending your hard-earned tax dollars when they passed H.R. 1319, “The American Rescue Plan,” more aptly referred to as “Pelosi’s Payoff to Progressives Act.” As I’ve shared before, though the bill is marketed as a pandemic relief package, in reality it is nothing more than a vehicle for Democrats to fund and push their radical agenda and pet projects.

In fact, my Republican colleagues on the House Budget Committee ran the numbers and found that less than 9% ($160 billion) of the total cost of Democrats’ COVID-19 “Rescue Plan” actually goes towards combatting and tracking the virus through public health measures.

Additionally, the bill seeks to send $12 billion in aid to foreign countries, which is consistent with the Biden Administration’s “America second” policies, $510 billion to states and localities, from which almost twice as much will go to Democratic communities and states that enacted painful lockdowns, and most egregiously, pass radical policies such as the $15 minimum wage proposal at the expense of nearly 1.4 million jobs. These are just a handful of budget busting provisions of the package.

Keep in mind that all of this is in addition to the $4 trillion Congress has already provided, $900 billion of which Congress sent out the door just two months ago. Before we spend even more money, I believe it is imperative that we know exactly how much of the $4 trillion has been spent. As such, I joined my colleagues in sponsoring a privileged resolution to require that President Biden provide to Congress a thorough and accurate accounting of all unspent COVID-19 funding to date.

To that end, it is a serious shame that the Democrats are putting partisan politics over policy when it comes to delivering smart and targeted relief to those in our communities that need it most.

Over the last two weeks, Republicans brought more than 220 amendments to the negotiating table as Democrats crafted their package, but unfortunately, less than 1% of those amendments were accepted. Similarly, Republicans offered more than 200 amendments to H.R. 1319 when it came before the Rules Committee on Friday, which was the last chance we had to eliminate wasteful spending, enact safeguards, and target dollars to those most in need before the bill was voted on, but yet again, the Democrats brushed these commonsense amendments aside and sent their partisan bailout bill sailing across the finish line. I want to take this opportunity to share with you an overview of the amendments I either offered or supported in an attempt to protect taxpayer dollars.

Amendment offered by Rep. Clyde:

· An amendment to ensure the Inspector General (IG) of the Department of the Treasury monitors and oversees all funds going to pandemic relief for state, local and tribal governments, territories, and nongovernmental entities such as nonprofits groups. If the IG determines funds have been misspent, the recipient government must repay the appropriate amount.

Amendments Rep. Clyde Co-Sponsored:

· An amendment to reinsert protections against using taxpayer dollars to fund elective abortions domestically and internationally.
· An amendment to prevent $1 billion to be spent on a COVID-19 vaccine “feel-good” advertising campaign.
· An amendment to prevent $750 million from being spent on combatting COVID-19 and other emerging infectious diseases in foreign countries.
· An amendment to prohibit tax dollars from being used to purchase personal protective equipment manufactured outside of the U.S.
· An amendment to prevent COVID-19 vaccines from being administered to illegal aliens before all eligible and willing Americans are vaccinated.
· An amendment to prohibit President Biden from unilaterally banning fracking.

Again, not one Republican amendment was accepted, and H.R. 1319 now awaits consideration in U.S. Senate. I sincerely hope you’ll join me in calling on the Senate to oppose this travesty of a “relief” bill.

As always, you can count on me to push back against this left-wing agenda for as long as I hold a seat in Congress.

I deeply appreciate those of you who have called and written to my office expressing your support on these and several other issues. Your messages of encouragement are a constant source of inspiration for me as I continue our fight here on Capitol Hill.

Thank you.