Ted Cruz Knocks AOC Off High Horse, Puts Pelosi On Notice: “Why is your party filibustering $500 billion in relief”
Sen. Ted Cruz knocked Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez off her high horse and put Nancy Pelosi on notice over the stalled stimulus.
Pelosi led an unconscionable but politically successful effort to deny Trump a huge win (and ability to send out $1,200 checks to all Americans) before the election by making the GOP an offer they couldn’t accept. Full of Dem wish lists and dreams she knew the GOP would not go along with it and she risked losing her speakership to not give Trump a win.
It was a ruthless gamble that partly backfired – the Dems barely kept the House and did not sweep the Senate. So she has to live with the consequences of her actions as Ted pointed out to AOC.
“People across the country are going hungry, COVID is set to explode, and Mitch McConnell dismissed the Senate last week,” Ocasio-Cortez said. “I don’t know how these people can sleep at night. I really don’t.”
“Why is your party filibustering $500 billion in COVID relief?” Cruz shot back.
“And Joe Biden is cheering them on. Thinking that blocking relief somehow helps Dems win Georgia.”
“AOC seems not to know there are Democrats in the Senate. Or that Joe Biden (also a Dem) is publicly calling on Senate Dems to continue filibustering COVID relief because he thinks it will help them win Georgia,” he added.
From Fox News:
Ocasio-Cortez, alongside other House Democrats, previously voted to pass the $3.4 trillion HEROES Act in May, and the updated, scaled-backed $2.2 trillion legislation in October.
“The House doesn’t have filibusters, @tedcruz,” she shot back. “We also passed several COVID relief packages to the Senate that not only include >$500 billion, but also prioritize helping real people as opposed to Wall St bailouts the GOP tries to pass off as ‘relief.’ Nice try though.”
Democrats in the Senate have more than once filibustered a vote on the scaled-back GOP proposal, most recently at the end of October. The bill, less than a third of the size of the $2.2 trillion figured back by Democratic leaders, included boosted federal unemployment benefits, another round of funding for the Paycheck Protection Program, a key small business rescue program, money for schools and liability protections for businesses.
Cruz replied: “AOC seems not to know there are Democrats in the Senate. Or that Joe Biden (also a Dem) is publicly calling on Senate Dems to continue filibustering COVID relief because he thinks it will help them win Georgia.”
For months, Congress has struggled to reach an agreement over another round of emergency relief for families and businesses still reeling from the pandemic after they passed the $2.2 trillion CARES Act in March. Ocasio-Cortez was one of the few lawmakers to vote against the bipartisan legislation, which she said left out key Democratic priorities. Cruz voted for the bill.
While there is broad support among members of both parties to pass another coronavirus relief bill, they disagree sharply over the size and scope of it. With just eight legislative days left in their calendar, it’s increasingly unlikely that lawmakers will be able to strike a deal before the year ends.
.@AOC seems not to know there are Democrats in the Senate.
— Ted Cruz (@tedcruz) November 24, 2020
Or that Joe Biden (also a Dem) is publicly calling on Senate Dems to continue filibustering COVID relief because he thinks it will help them win Georgia. https://t.co/vy5HG3h2qr