Congressman Thomas Massie (R-KY) is taking heat from both sides of the aisle, following what may be the boldest move we’ve seen from an elected official in decades.
In case you’re living under a rock or haven’t paid attention to what is going on in America, President Trump was urging Congress to sign off on an emergency stimulus package to boost the economy in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic.
Massie did what other elected officials weren’t willing to do. He spoke up and asked Congress to take a deep breath, gather a quorum, and debate the contents of the spending package.
When he called for the quorum and requested a rollcall vote, the Chair ignored him, and the spending bill passed without a recorded vote.
Covid-19 needs serious attention, but someone must keep a lookout for the unintended consequences that may have an impact on our country for generations to come. Massie urged his colleagues to follow their constitutional duty when asking Congress to debate all the contents of the bill.
While President Trump, John Kerry, and Nancy Pelosi took to the airwaves to chastise Massie, the people at home should be asking a few questions:
- Why didn’t members of Congress want to go on record with a recorded vote? What are they hiding?
- What was in the spending package directly helps end the pandemic?
- Are there any unnecessary carveouts?
- Why a $6 trillion price-tag?
You are probably like the majority of us who are pessimistic when it comes to politicians and what motivates them, and you should be.
Politicians are sneaky, and they will buy public support with so-called gifts. In this case, they promised every working family in America a “check” to help them get by. So what’s the catch?
This twitter post from @RepThomasMassie sums it up best:
It’s concerning, our representatives would think they could get away with snagging $68,000 from our families without even telling us what they’re buying.
Here is an excerpt from OpenTheBooks.com, an organization working to provide transparency on spending at every level of government:
“Last night, the U.S. Senate unanimously passed a $2 trillion “Phase III” emergency aid package to help America recover from the coronavirus lockdown. Previous phases provided funds for testing and paid family leave.
Not one U.S. Senator voted against the legislation: 96-0. Twice during the first hour of Senate debate, two “final” versions were distributed. No one had time to read the final language.
Our organization at OpenTheBooks.com posted an official summary of the legislation’s “supplemental” funding, here.
The Republican majority Senate and Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) introduced their 250-page version of this coronavirus aid relief and economic security act a week ago. It eventually became the $2 trillion, 883 page CARES Act – Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (H.R.748).”
From our first review, this is as bad, if not worse than most congressional spending packages because the political class used the fear of the pandemic to coverup the non-essential spending on pet projects.
Trump supporters may be upset with us for writing this, but we need to be honest about this.
The Tarp Bailout under Bush was irresponsible, the Porkulus Package under Obama was irresponsible, and we don’t support this $6 trillion boondoggle either. Our future generations deserve better than having to pay for the mistakes of a fiscally out-of-control congress.
It’s time to hold Congress accountable, and Congressman Massie deserves props for standing up to the swamp.