Share

Schumer, Pelosi Have a Sickening Response to Spending Bill Passing

Share

House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer reveled in their win with the Friday passage into law of the $1.3 trillion omnibus spending bill.

“At the end of the day, as the minority party, we feel good about being able to succeed in so many ways,” Schumer said, according to Washington Examiner. “We don’t have the House, we don’t have the Senate, we don’t have the presidency, but we produced a darn good bill for the priorities we have believed in.”

He further observed, “It’s a funny thing. In a certain sense, we’re able to accomplish more in the minority than we were when we had the presidency or even were in the majority.”

Pelosi credited those Republicans opposed to the legislation with giving Democrats leverage in negotiations surrounding the 2,200-page bill. The bill passed the House 256 to 167, with 145 Republicans and 111 Democrats voting “yes.” The “no” votes came from 90 Republicans and 77 Democrats, Roll Call reported.

The Senate passed the measure 65 to 32, with 24 Republican senators voting against it.

Trending:
Hillary Clinton Jumps Into Trump 'Bloodbath' Frenzy with a Question, Doesn't Want to Hear the Answers

“Much of our leverage has sprung from the fact that the Republicans … they weren’t voting for this bill,” Pelosi said. “That gave us leverage in all the negotiations. That gave the middle class a victory.”

Freedom Caucus member Rep. Jim Jordan of Ohio was one of those opposed.

“This may be the worst bill I have seen in my time in Congress and the worst bill our leadership has ever allowed to come to the floor,” he said.

Do you think the Democrats won with passage of the omnibus bill?

Pelosi claimed Republican leaders pushed the bill through quickly because they did not want their members to have time to digest it.

“I think one of the reasons they rushed it through – posting it last night, taking it to rolls on the floor today, not honoring the three-day rule – they didn’t want their Republican colleagues to see just what exactly was in the bill,” she said.

“Because this bill was a victory for investment in our future … supporting our middle class and doing so in a way that was producing good-paying job,” the minority leader added.

Pelosi also gloated in the Democrats’ success during negotiations to remove the budget sequestration caps as part of the omnibus bill.

“The debate we had on the caps was a very successful one where we said the increase in defense had to be matched by an increase in domestic spending,” she said.

Related:
Hillary Clinton Jumps Into Trump 'Bloodbath' Frenzy with a Question, Doesn't Want to Hear the Answers

President Donald Trump conceded what Pelosi said was true, but contended he had to sign the bill for the sake of the country’s national defense.

“My highest duty is to keep America safe,” Trump said. “Therefore, as a matter of national security, I’ve signed this omnibus bill.”

“There are a lot of things that I’m unhappy about in this bill,” he added. “There are a lot of things that we shouldn’t have had in this bill, but we were, in a sense, forced — if we want to build our military — we were forced to have.”

Trump explained that for the last 8 years, deep cuts to the defense budget undermined the nation’s security by hollowing out the military’s readiness.

The president pledged to “never sign a bill like this again.”

“To prevent the omnibus situation from ever happening again, I’m calling on Congress to give me a line-item veto for all government spending bills. And the Senate must end — they must end the filibuster rule and get down to work,” he said.

“We have to get rid of the filibuster rule and go to 51 votes in the Senate, if we’re going to have really sustained, continued success,” he added.

Truth and Accuracy

Submit a Correction →



We are committed to truth and accuracy in all of our journalism. Read our editorial standards.

Tags:
, , , , , ,
Share
Randy DeSoto has written more than 2,000 articles for The Western Journal since he joined the company in 2015. He is a graduate of West Point and Regent University School of Law. He is the author of the book "We Hold These Truths" and screenwriter of the political documentary "I Want Your Money."
Randy DeSoto is the senior staff writer for The Western Journal. He wrote and was the assistant producer of the documentary film "I Want Your Money" about the perils of Big Government, comparing the presidencies of Ronald Reagan and Barack Obama. Randy is the author of the book "We Hold These Truths," which addresses how leaders have appealed to beliefs found in the Declaration of Independence at defining moments in our nation's history. He has been published in several political sites and newspapers.

Randy graduated from the United States Military Academy at West Point with a BS in political science and Regent University School of Law with a juris doctorate.
Birthplace
Harrisburg, Pennsylvania
Nationality
American
Honors/Awards
Graduated dean's list from West Point
Education
United States Military Academy at West Point, Regent University School of Law
Books Written
We Hold These Truths
Professional Memberships
Virginia and Pennsylvania state bars
Location
Phoenix, Arizona
Languages Spoken
English
Topics of Expertise
Politics, Entertainment, Faith




Conversation