Burchett: Relief bill is for D.C. politicians, not East Tennesseans

Press Release

Early this morning, the House of Representatives voted on the $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan. U.S. Representative Tim Burchett (TN-02) opposed this piece of legislation.

Rep. Burchett gave remarks during debate on the House floor ahead of the vote, pointing out this bill was not drafted with East Tennesseans in mind.

"It is easy to understand why my colleagues across the aisle are so eager to vote for this massive bailout. Because everything in it is for political payback," Rep. Burchett said during his speech. "There is way too much pork in here for special interests that have nothing to do with addressing coronavirus. This was drafted for the politicians in D.C., not my constituents in East Tennessee."

Rep. Burchett also highlighted the fact over $1 trillion in federal COVID-19 economic aid remains unspent and that very little money in the American Rescue Plan goes towards addressing the coronavirus pandemic.

"The bill we are about to vote on is the gravy train and the final stop before it goes off the cliff is in this chamber," Rep. Burchett said. "It costs one-point-nine trillion dollars, and only 9% goes to addressing coronavirus."

Provisions unrelated to COVID-19 stuffed into this legislation include $100 million for a rail project in House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's California Congressional District, $1.5 million for a bridge to Canada in Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer's home state of New York, $12 billion in American taxpayer dollars leaving the country in the form of foreign aid.

Click here or on the image above to watch Rep. Burchett's full speech during floor debate.

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