[Congressional Record Volume 167, Number 35 (Wednesday, February 24, 2021)]
[House]
[Pages H591-H592]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                      BIDEN COVID BAILOUT PACKAGE

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from 
North Carolina (Mr. Budd) for 5 minutes.
  Mr. BUDD. Mr. Speaker, over the past year, the government has 
appropriated over $4 trillion--that is with a T--in COVID relief. Now 
we are standing here this week and we are debating whether or not to 
add another $2 trillion to that enormous total.
  But what should shock taxpayers across the country is that $1 
trillion of COVID relief still remains unspent. That means funding is 
still left over from last December and funding is still left over from 
even last March. Now, that is money that the current administration 
hasn't spent for vaccines, hasn't spent for testing, hasn't spent on 
schools reopening, and certainly not even to reopen our country.
  Mr. Speaker, I think people in Washington often forget that the 
dollars that we are debating really aren't ours. They are the next 
generation's, and this money belongs to that generation and to the 
American people.
  Is it not too much to ask what the current administration plans to do 
with the $1 trillion in unspent taxpayer funds, Mr. Speaker, especially 
before we toss another $2 trillion on to that pile?

[[Page H592]]

  This is a basic question that would come up during a family budget 
discussion with a lot less zeros, much less the Government of the 
United States talking about trillions of dollars.
  But before and beyond the unspent funds, what the Democrat package 
does spend money on is yet another partisan wish list with about 9 
percent of it actually going to COVID. Meaning 91 percent of it is not 
even COVID-related.
  Mr. Speaker, this bill's minimum wage increase, for instance, would 
kill 1.4 million blue-collar jobs, and its unemployment insurance hike 
would keep incentivizing workers to stay at home, which is a real 
struggle in my district when an employer wants 2,000 people to come 
back to work and they are competing with the Federal Government. This 
makes it worse.
  Under this bill, Mr. Speaker, stimulus checks would go to illegal 
immigrants. Under this bill, taxpayer funding for abortion is allowed, 
and Planned Parenthood is eligible for PPP loans. Under this bill, 
funding is allowed to flow to colleges and universities that partner 
with companies that are controlled by Communist China. Under this bill, 
$110 billion would be sent to schools, regardless if they reopen or 
not. There is no support for families who are desperate for educational 
options for their kids.
  Obviously, of course, Democrats hid irrelevant spending in this bill, 
just like environmental justice grants, $800 million in aid to other 
countries, and a $112 million earmark for a big tech subway in Silicon 
Valley.
  The bottom line, Mr. Speaker, is we are again debating a liberal wish 
list disguised as COVID relief. The American people aren't fooled by 
any of this. They see through the game, and they know that this town 
can and should do better.

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