Congressman Jared Golden( D-ME) praised the $1.9 trillion stimulus bill that was passed in the House early Saturday morning and used to call more bipartisanship in Washington, a move that comes little than 24 hours after he was one of two Democrats to vote against President Joe Biden’s first major legislative initiative.
In an interrogation with The Hill on Saturday after the House vote, Golden argued that the $1.9 trillion stimulus wasn’t sufficiently targeted, and had said that Democrats should have sought GOP support for it. “I like to often remind myself that exactly because you can do something doesn’t mean that you are able to. It doesn’t mean that it’s in the best interest of the country, ” said Golden.
“I guess I is suggested that I don’t think it was in the best interest of the country. I think that we have ended up with worse public policy as a result, rather than a more targeted bill that would come out of a bipartisan process, ” he said.
The stimulus bill would stipulate $200 billion for public institutions, $50 billion for COVID-1 9 vaccination rationing, contact retracing, and tests, and expand the weekly unemployment booster checks at $400 — instead of $ 300 — until the end of August of 2021. The money would also provide a $1,400 stimulus pay to individuals who earn little than $75,000 per year, and would ply $350 billion for territories, local governments, and tribal governments.
Among Golden’s essays were that the statute included funded for priorities that have already been funded through previous legislation, including “billions and billions”of dollars that have “yet to smack their own economies, ” reports The Hill. And by not targeting, proposed Golden, lawmakers were spending money that could have been used for other priorities.
“We need to get more and more targeted as we move forward here so that we have…the resources we need for other critical reforms that the American parties likewise need us to step up and to get out of here, ” said Golden.
The final House vote was 219 -2 12. One other Democrat, Congressman Kurt Schrader of Oregon, likewise voted against the money. It will likely still be amended in the Senate, partly because Democrats included a provision to increase the minimum wage to $15 per hour that the Senate parliamentarian previously said did not comport with the Senate rules.
Golden was also critical of the Senate passing the money through the reconciliation process, the very process the rules of which will require Democrat to axe the $15 minimum wage hike in the House-passed bill. Under the reconciliation process, the Senate can guide legislation with a veto-proof simple majority, but the legislation has to follow highly specific and complex regulations related to the budget.
While Democrat do have the votes to pass the stimulus greenback without any GOP support if Vice President Kamala Harris helps as a tie-breaker, Democrat can’t gamble a single defection in the Senate in order to spawn that happen.
” I think that we also have to accept the fact that we are going to have to work with the Republican Party and that is the mandate that was delivered by voters across 50 regimes ,” Golden told The Hill.” And there’s only so many times you can do budget reconciliation .”
Golden also points out that Democrats having transferred the stimulus invoice without GOP support could turn off Republican lawmakers from working with them in the future.” It poisoned the shaft a little so to speak ,” he said.
Related: Democrat-Controlled House Passes $ 1.9 Trillion Stimulus Bill; Two Dems Vote Against It
The Daily Wire is one of America’s fastest-growing conservative media companies and counter-cultural outlets for information, opinion, and entertainment. Get inside access to The Daily Wire by becoming a member.
Read more: dailywire.com
