We can officially dub Representative Peter King from New York as a RINO.
In the past, he’s had no issue voting with Democrats in the past on legislation such as assault weapons bans.
This one may take the cake, however.
King has officially announced his plans to vote for Pelosi’s ridiculous $3 trillion stimulus bill.
Details were first reported from The Hill on King’s decision:
Rep. Peter King (R-N.Y.) said he plans to buck party lines and vote in favor of the $3 trillion coronavirus relief package proposed by House Democrats and slated to come to the floor on Friday.
King — who represents one of the hardest-hit districts in the state and is set to retire at the end of this term — said while there are provisions that give him pause, he feels it’s critical that Congress provide funding for state and local governments that have been disproportionately affected by the deadly virus. The New York Republican also said the language to eliminate the $10,000 cap on the state and local tax (SALT) deduction for 2020 and 2021 factored into his decision to back the measure.
“In some ways it’s a tough decision and in some ways it’s an easy decision,” King told The Hill.
“Look, I disagree with a lot of things that are in that bill: some of the provisions involving illegal immigrants, some of the absentee ballots, the mail, all that stuff. But the fact is, to me, [Majority Leader Mitch] McConnell (R-Ky.) sort of laid it down…he’s talking about no federal aid to state and local governments. New York is going to die, my county, Nassau County, [and] Suffolk County is also in my district; not only are they running up tremendous cost, their revenue losses are unbelievable.”
New York is the state hardest hit by coronavirus, with around 340,000 confirmed cases and more than 20,000 deaths.
Funding for state and local governments has emerged as a key issue for the next round of coronavirus legislation, with governors arguing they need federal help as the pandemic forces them to increase spending on services while taking a heavy hit to revenue. Some Republicans have countered that such funding would amount to “blue state bailouts.”
King said he believes the pandemic should be treated as a natural disaster, calling for adequate funding to be provided to the areas that have seen the highest number of cases.
“If we don’t get [money] at the state level, county level, city levels…if we don’t get the federal funding, which we give whenever there’s a natural disaster — we gave it after [Hurricane] Katrina, the only time we had to fight for it was during [Hurricane] Sandy — but this is a natural disaster, and the money has to come in,” he said.
It’s not completely surprising King’s chosen to defect from the Republican Party. Last month, he condemned Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell in the following tweet:
King also went on Newsmax in March and called for Republicans and Democrats to “work together.” Work together on what? Bankrupting the country? Check out his appearance below:
If you’re curious on the bill King will be voting yes on, CNN reported yesterday on the House Democrats’ latest bill:
House Democrats announced a sweeping new Covid-19 stimulus bill on Tuesday with a price tag expected to be more than $3 trillion -- an amount that would stand as the largest relief package in history.
The legislation, which provides funding for state and local governments, coronavirus testing, and a new round of direct payments to Americans, sets up an immediate clash with the Senate, where Republican leaders have said another round of emergency funding is not yet needed.
Sen. John Barrasso, a member of Republican leadership in the chamber, warned that the new bill is dead on arrival. "That will not pass. It's not going to be supported," he said of the new legislation.
The package is expected to cost more than $3 trillion, dwarfing the stimulus measure enacted in March, which was more than $2 trillion and at the time amounted to the largest emergency aid package in American history.
The bill, which Democrats are calling the Heroes Act, would provide nearly $1 trillion for state and local governments, a $200 billion fund for essential worker hazard pay, an additional $75 billion for Covid-19 testing, tracing and isolation efforts, and a new round of direct payments to Americans of up to $6,000 per household, according to a fact sheet released by the House Appropriations Committee.
House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, a Maryland Democrat, notified members on Tuesday afternoon that the House is expected to meet Friday morning to vote on the legislation.
Heroes Act? Who are the Democrats kidding?
Of course, the name was chosen as a way to garner support for the big because it’s laden down with an absolutely ridiculous progressive wish-list.
What does eliminating the limitations on the SALT deductions and funding historically-black colleges have to do with COVID?
See some of the reactions on Twitter for Pelosi’s delusional bill:
Check out more from Breitbart on some of the measures in Pelosi’s bill:
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) unveiled her $3 trillion phase four coronavirus bill on Tuesday that serves as a “policy wishlist” for Democrats and progressives.
Pelosi unveiled the Heroes Act, which is a 1,815-page bill that the House will likely vote on Tuesday.
The legislation was not negotiated with congressional Republicans or the Donald Trump administration, and even if it passes through the House, it will likely languish in the Senate.
Politico reported in May that the legislation serves as more of a wishlist for the House Democrat conference’s most progressive lawmakers.
Politico wrote:
Privately, several House Democrats concede their latest bill feels like little more than an effort to appease the most liberal members of the caucus, many of whom were chafed that their most important priorities were minimized or ignored entirely in previous coronavirus negotiations.
The Heroes Act reportedly contains many leftist provisions in the bill, including:
- $755 million for the government for Washington, DC. The bill would also allow the D.C. government to participate in the Federal Reserve’s Municipal Liquidity (MLF) to support additional lending to the city.
- $1 million for the National Science Foundation to study the spread of coronavirus-related “disinformation.”
- $10 million for the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) as well as $10 million fo the National Endowment for the Humanities.
- Eliminates limitations on the federal deduction for the state and local taxes (SALT). Republicans limited this deduction through the Trump Tax Cuts and Jobs Act. The SALT deduction primarily benefits wealthy, largely Democrat states.
- Grants additional aid for State and local government bailouts. The bill contains $500 billion in funding for state government relief and $375 billion in aid to local governments. Senate Republicans such as Sens. Rick Scott (R-FL) and Ted Cruz (R-TX) have contended this will particularly aid fiscally irresponsible blue states such as California, New York, and Illinois to the detriment of more fiscally responsible states such as Texas and Florida.
- $25 million for migrant and seasonal farmworkers, including emergency support services through the Department of Labor.
- $1.7 billion for Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) and Minority Serving Institutions, $20 million for Howard University, $11 million for Gallaudet University, $11 million for the National Technical Institute for the Deaf.
Fortunately, "Republican" Representative Peter King plans to retire at the end of his term.
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