The Democrats’ grab bag

Covid relief plan, at $1.9 trillion, a spending spree

As Democrats advance their covid-19 “relief” bill, it’s like watching kids in a candy store. They are filling up their bag with anything they can get their hands on, without a thought of the consequences. Grab, grab, grab. It all sounds good at first, but when the sugar high wears off, reality sets in.

Even a cursory glance of the package reveals the true intent of this legislation. It’s not about the pandemic — it’s about implementing the left’s sweeping agenda. Don’t be fooled. Less than 10% of the $1.9 trillion plan goes toward combatting covid-19 through public health funding, such as a national vaccination program, tracking, and more testing.

So, before we swipe our nation’s credit card with a nearly $2,000,000,000,000 charge, let’s take a deep dive into what would actually be on the receipt.

It includes $350 billion to state and local governments, despite the fact many localities have yet to finish spending relief aid from last spring — and overall state and local revenue is rising, not falling. For example, after projecting a $54.3 billion shortfall, California has reported billions in surplus. This bill would send them more than $40 billion in bailout money. Democrats are hell-bent on cutting a check no matter the actual need. It’s nothing more than a slush fund for places whose fiscal woes stem from years of financial mismanagement long before covid-19 was even a word in our vocabulary.

I will also note the Democrats changed the formula for certain relief funds. Some allocations will be based on unemployment, not population. So, extreme lockdown states with teetering economies — like Andrew Cuomo’s New York (8.2% unemployment) — would be rewarded for their disastrous policies compared to those who didn’t eviscerate businesses and the workforce.

In Arkansas, we utilize fiscal sanity and reason. Our sales tax revenue is strong, with cities and counties in the Third Congressional District generally showing positive increases during the pandemic. In reviewing sales tax collections throughout the district, it is telling that, on average, our counties were up 11% in 2020 compared to 2019. Looking at a selection of 17 cities from across the district — including the 10 largest by population — the average percent increase in 2020 over 2019 was 8.27%. There’s even better news: the generally positive trajectories have continued into 2021.

The picture just painted doesn’t come near the budgetary calamity the other side of the aisle likes to use as a rallying call for unrestrained cash infusions. The Natural State has prioritized both protecting communities and keeping our economy safely moving throughout the pandemic, and it’s completely unfair for our taxpayers to be on the hook for billions of dollars added to debt for blue state bailouts.

Next up on the wish list, over $100 million for Speaker Pelosi’s underground rail project to Silicon

Valley and $1.5 million for Senator Chuck Schumer’s pet project, the Seaway International Bridge. Handouts for Amtrak, multi-employer pensions, environmental justice grants, foreign aid and more. It also includes certain benefits for illegal immigrants and tacks on big subsidies for Obamacare as they lay the foundation for one of their biggest socialist priorities: Medicare-for-all.

Lest we forget the $15 minimum wage — being pushed by Sen. Bernie Sanders, a self-described “socialist democrat.” The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office estimated this will eliminate 1.4 million jobs and add $54 billion to the deficit. Blanket mandates are conceptually a wrongheaded strategy, but even worse at a time when so many businesses are struggling. A wage increase doesn’t sound as good when it comes with a pink slip.

How about sending billions to schools without requiring a plan to get kids back in classrooms? That makes zero sense. Congress last year appropriated $68 billion in covid-19 relief for K-12 schools, yet billions of dollars remain unspent. Now, Democrats are gearing up to send another $130 billion to schools — whether they open or not. This policy fails our kids. Arkansas has set an example by following the science. Other communities should follow suit.

Our continued response must be focused on doing what is necessary, not what is politically opportunistic. We previously acted in a bipartisan manner to help families and businesses across the nation. It was the right thing to do. In fact, more than $1 trillion in assistance remains unspent. It was also recently projected that the U.S. economy will grow 3.7% this year without any additional stimulus.

This is not “free money.” We have no business burdening our children and grandchildren with more debt simply because some have an insatiable appetite to spend. This bill is the wrong approach. Even liberal economists, including Larry Summers, a top advisor to former President Obama, said the package is too big and could set off catastrophic inflation. We need targeted, temporary and transparent policies that help those hardest hit by the pandemic — not hyper-partisan bills filled with items unrelated to the coronavirus.

I will work with President Biden and every member of the House to defeat the virus — but I will not stand down as my colleagues on the other side of the aisle try to market big spending as effective policy. Congress should reject this partisan bill and get to work on serious, bipartisan solutions for the challenges American families, businesses, and communities face.

U.S. Rep. Steve Womack of Rogers has represented the Third Congressional District of Arkansas since 2011.