Ways and Means Republican Leader Kevin Brady (R-TX) slammed Democrats’ $1.9 trillion Pelosi Payoff bill as neither focusing on the virus nor on creating jobs during Friday night’s vote.

To watch his remarks click here.

Below are his remarks as prepared for delivery.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, this “Covid Stimulus” is neither. 

Less than a dime of every dollar goes to Covid vaccines and defeating the virus.

It does next-to-nothing to help struggling Main Street businesses or to get America’s jobless back to work.

The independent Congressional Budget Office reports the bill’s controversial job-killing mandates will kill as many as 2 million jobs, especially for young and poorly educated workers. 

Maybe that’s why the White House refuses to tell the American people how many jobs it will create.  

We need truth in advertising: This is a payoff to political friends. 

We did better when we worked together. Through December, over five Covid aid bills, Republicans and Democrats, we worked tirelessly to deliver over $3.5 trillion, the largest amount of relief in American history.

A whopping $1 trillion remains unspent by states, local governments, and schools.  

Economists including President Obama’s own economic advisor Larry Summers worry this will actually make things worse.

The Washington Post called this “sausage-making” that “strays from the most urgent Covid-related needs.”

The Wall Street Journal said it’s a “non-Covid spending blowout.” 

Even Democratic colleagues like New York’s Rep. Adriano Espaillat admitted this bill will have “embarrassing” provisions.

House Democrats rejected every common-sense Republican improvement.

Help millions of unemployed but make sure no one gets paid more to stay at home than go to work? Rejected.

Send child poverty funding equally to all poor children in America rather than a chosen few in Democrat states? Rejected. In fact Democrats said that miserly states didn’t deserve this funding. Miserly states like West Virginia? I hope you heard that Senator Manchin.

Require that crucial school funding ensures open schools? Rejected.

Protecting front-line health care workers from frivolous lawsuits? Rejected.

Stop rampant unemployment fraud simply by verifying the identity and wages of those applying? Rejected.

Giving a second stimulus check to the #JoeJobless – the victims of President Biden’s war on energy and his wage mandate? Rejected.

Helping parents use education savings towards kids’ schooling, and especially therapies for special-needs kids? Rejected.

What about aiding families by making permanent the 2017 tax reform’s doubled child tax credit? Nope. 

Make sure precious health care dollars aren’t used for abortions or diverted to undocumented immigrants? Uh-uh.  

Republicans proposed requiring governors report accurate data on their nursing home deaths—but Democrats unanimously chose to protect N.Y. Governor Cuomo’s deadly policies and cover-up.

Hours later, Cuomo’s aides admitted they had reported false data.

Speaker Pelosi’s favorite pet projects and other wasteful spending could go to more vaccine distribution for needy Americans. But no. Rejected.

President Biden promised unity. Now he threatens to punish Republicans who oppose this massive payoff to the Democrats’ political friends. 

But President Biden and the Democrats are not punishing us by rejecting bipartisanship. They are punishing the American people. 

Don’t know “how many jobs will this create?” Then don’t repeat the failed Obama-Biden “stimulus” that led to the worst economic recovery in our lifetime. 

Stop this political payoff.

Let’s find common ground, as we have before, on what’s truly urgent: crushing the virus, rebuilding this economy, saving Main Street businesses, and getting Americans back to work.

Closing:

Mr. / Madame Speaker,

Americans struggling with Covid, businesses fighting to survive, seniors waiting for vaccines, millions of Americans now jobless due to lockdowns – they all deserve better than this partisan, rushed, special interest payoff to political friends.

Less than a dime of every dollar of this bill goes to Covid vaccines and defeating the virus. There’s next-to-nothing to save Main Street businesses or to get America’s unemployed back to work.

And after spending nearly $2 trillion, the White House can’t – or won’t – tell us how many jobs this will create.

History will describe this moment at a time when more than 500,000 Americans have lost their lives, millions are jobless, small businesses are struggling, and seniors are praying for the vaccine, House Democrats said, “Let’s build our speaker a tunnel.” Come on man. 

We can do better. We can work in a bipartisan way to crush this virus and rebuild America’s economy — just as we did five times this past year to deliver the largest relief in American history.

Vote no to payoffs to political friends.