House Democrats passed a $1.5 trillion omnibus spending bill after hours of delay and Democrat confusion.
House Democrats passed the $1.5 trillion omnibus spending bill, which was separated into two votes. The first half, focusing on security funding, passed with 361 votes for and 69 votes against the provision. The second half, featuring the remainder of the spending, passed with 260 votes for and 171 against the measure.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) held the vote on the spending bill after hours of delay and confusion.
The bill originally had $15 billion in coronavirus aid; however, Pelosi moved to strip the coronavirus aid after facing steep opposition from her own caucus. Democrats had agreed to include offsets in the bill, but many Democrats across the spectrum raised concerns about the bill removing state aid to offset the cost of the $15 billion in coronavirus aid.
In a statement about the move, Pelosi blamed Republicans, even though it was Democrats that had raised issues with the bill.
“Because of Republican insistence — and the resistance by a number of our Members to making those offsets — we will go back to the Rules Committee to remove COVID funding to meet the needs of America’s families,” she wrote in a letter to House Democrats earlier on Wednesday.
The Democrat division on the coronavirus offsets occurred when Rep. Jody Hice (R-GA) offered a motion to adjourn, which continued for four hours as Democrats could not figure out how to address the issue. Democrat leadership had to move the bill back to the Rules Committee to address Democrats’ concerns.
The delay over passing the omnibus — which must be passed before Friday to avoid a government shutdown — put off a House Democrat retreat in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The Democrat retreat will feature a man who presents himself as a parody of a woman — in “drag” — to entertain Democrat lawmakers as they design their election strategy ahead of the pivotal 2022 midterm elections.
Democrat leaders said they “will proceed to Philadelphia by bus this evening immediately following last votes. At the conclusion of the vote series, Members should proceed as quickly as possible out the East front to the buses”
The bill would provide Ukraine with over $13 billion in new humanitarian, economic, and military assistance in its conflict with Russia.
The omnibus spending bill contains many leftist, woke, and climate change carveouts.
The legislation includes a provision that expands diversity, equality, and inclusion at the Office of the Director of National Intelligence.
The omnibus spending bill funds “border security” for eight foreign countries while including no new funds to construct a border wall along the United States-Mexico border.
A Republican Study Committee (RSC) messaging document obtained by Breitbart News found that the bill has many issues, including:
- The bill would spend over $100 billion on Green New Deal initiatives, and advance “racial justice” through Department of Agriculture programs.
- The bill also contains $100 million for environmental justice activities at the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and $75 million for low or zero-emission vehicles
- $26 billion in food stamp funding
- This is the first spending bill to include earmarks.
- No protections from Chinese espionage in grants to the National Science Foundation
- Increases National Institutes of Health (NIH) funding by 10 percent
- Provides $66 million for the “Racial and Ethnic Approaches to Community Health (REACH), an increase of $8 million from last year
Heritage Foundation found that the bill would send taxpayer funds to Planned Parenthood.
Rep. Andy Biggs (R-AZ), who voted against the omnibus, said in a statement on Wednesday, “This bill would exacerbate our out-of-control spending. At a time when the national debt has surpassed $30 trillion, Congress cannot continue this cycle of reckless spending. This bill would dramatically increase the deficit, leaving a massive bill for our children to pay.”
“Six months into the fiscal year, Nancy Pelosi released a 2700-page bill in the middle of the night and gave members less than 24 hours to read it,” he added. “Congress must fund the government in a responsible and appropriate manner by returning to regular order and going through the committee process.”
The bill moves to the Senate, where it must be passed before Friday to avert a government shutdown.
Sean Moran is a congressional reporter for Breitbart News. Follow him on Twitter @SeanMoran3.
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