Rep. Chip Roy on Friday blew up at the process that is forcing a quick vote on a $1.7 trillion bill that no one has read and said the Democratic rush job is destroying the country.
“We’re spending money we don’t have,” the Texas Republican said Friday morning on the House floor. “Go home and sell your projects, go home and talk about all the pork you’re bringing home. But you’re destroying the United States of America, absolutely destroying this body.”
Roy offered several amendments to the mammoth spending bill, none of which were allowed as Democrat leaders pushed for a vote by midday Friday. Roy mocked Democrats who said Republicans refused to bargain with Democrats as the process quickly unfolded in the last several days on a bill that Republicans said would add to the $31.3 trillion national debt.
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“What table is the gentleman referring to?” Roy asked. “What table does he want us to come sit down and negotiate? It’s not this table. I don’t have the power to offer an amendment on the floor of the House of Representatives, despite being elected by 750,000 Texans.”
“Not one amendment has been offered on the floor of this body since May of 2016 in open debate,” he said.
“Everything the American people is watching right now is a complete sham,” Roy added. “It’s a fraud, a fraud being perpetrated on the American people right before their eyes, right as we head into Christmas.”
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Roy blasted the 18 Republicans in the Senate who supported the bill this week.
“We had 18 Republicans, who joined with Democrats in the Senate, get on their fancy planes and go home, and we’re sitting here trying to do the work of the people, not spend money we don’t have, not drive up more inflation, not have 7,500 earmarks for $16 billion for pet leftist projects across this country,” he said.
Roy said House lawmakers are also more worried about leaving for Christmas than they are about writing a more sensible bill. Roy would later look to delay House passage of the bill by making a motion to adjourn, requiring the House to take time to deal with that vote as many are looking to escape Washington.
“They were more concerned with catching their flights for Christmas, coming to me and saying, ‘We can’t be here over Christmas.’ Well, why the hell not?” he said.
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Roy also bristled at the idea that more than half of the House members voting Friday might already be home for Christmas. Most lawmakers requested proxy voting Friday, which lets them claim worries about COVID as a reason to vote remotely.
However, Roy implied that most members will vote remotely just to get a jump on the holiday.
“Half of this body is not even going to be here,” he said. “And they’re lying, they’re lying on forms saying that they’re voting by proxy for COVID, and it’s a lie.”