Scalise: Dems Politicize COVID-19 Relief Instead of Helping Families Recover

WASHINGTON, D.C.—House Republican Whip Steve Scalise (R-La.) joined Fox News Channel's Fox & Friends to discuss the ongoing COVID-19 relief negotiations. Whip Scalise blasted Speaker Pelosi for attempting to politicize COVID-19 relief in the middle of a pandemic with unrelated liberal wish list items instead of working with Republicans on reasonable solutions, including first allocating the roughly $500 billion in the CARES Actthat has gone unspent before demanding new spending.

As Speaker Pelosi pursues Democrats' radical left Coronavirus bill filled with irresponsible provisions unrelated to COVID-19, President Trump and House Republicans are focused on taking action to help families get back on their feet, and help businesses and schools safely reopen.

On Speaker Pelosi's partisan COVID-19 bill filled with irresponsible provisions:

"Clearly, we're very far apart. You know, you just mentioned Speaker Pelosi's, you could call it 'No Liberal Cause Left Behind Act' that they filed. It shows you where they really want to go. Our focus has always been on helping people get back on their feet and helping schools and businesses safely reopen. What [Democrats] are talking about, I mean, over $1 trillion now they want to use to bail out states that were failing before COVID. You're talking about mailing ballots, election ballots to people illegally on voter rolls. What does that have to do with COVID, first of all? But it really shows you their priorities. And so, a very big difference between the sides. We really can be doing a lot of things.

"And by the way, there's over $500 billion of existing money that we already spent in the CARES Act that hasn't been spent that can be more flexibly used. For example, for states to help schools reopen safely. Buying supplies, like masks and hand sanitizer, to help small businesses get back on their feet, to help people that are struggling. All of that is still unspent money. Why do they need to add another $3 trillion of debt to do all of these things that have nothing to do with COVID?"

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"I think you go back to looking at the actual legislation that both sides have filed and you look at every bill that they've filed is included. Again, mailing ballots, election ballots, to people illegally on rolls. The Green New Deal kind of thing where you're telling airplanes what kind of carbon emissions they have to have. I mean, every airplane I've flown on in the last few weeks is barely half-full. They're just struggling to stay alive and they're telling them they have to reconfigure the engines and put solar panels on the airplanes. I mean, this is ridiculous stuff.

"Why don't we focus on helping families, helping small businesses? Look, parents don't want to be homeschoolers again for another semester when there are clear guidelines from CMS, CDC, as well as from the American Academy of Pediatrics on how to safely reopen schools. They also, by the way, talk about the damage you're doing to kids by not reopening. And if a school system doesn't want to safely reopen, how about you let the money follow the child so that the parent has other choices where there are school systems that are willing to safely educate your child? I think that should be a fair debate that we put on the table as well."

On House Democrats' attempt to politicize COVID-19 instead of helping struggling families:

"Well, it's blatantly political by the Democrats. And you saw them block, again, on the Senate floor the ability just to bring up a bill for debate because they want to squeeze that leverage as tight as possible on working families who are struggling. People are sick and tired of those kinds of games. You know, if you have differences on a bill and it's up there for debate in the Senate, then bring up the bill and debate it. That's, I thought, what the Senate was there to do, was to debate legislation. And instead, Chuck Schumer continues to block every piece of legislation while just adding up the price of any kind of bill that he wants to bring to bail out failed states, to do all of these things that have nothing to do with COVID.

"I think people are watching and are sick of it. They at least appreciate that President Trump is trying to negotiate while he's also taking decisive action to keep people safe, to come out with more guidelines. Again, you look at the new guidelines that the Trump Administration has come out with for things like how to safely reopen schools, showing how you can do it. By the way, most school systems are following those guidelines. And then you've got some teachers' unions saying that they would rather be out protesting than teaching kids in the classroom, 10 feet apart with masks on, which is completely safe."