FISM News

‘Traitor’ Republicans face party backlash after infrastructure vote

by mcardinal

Lauren Moye, FISM NEWS

 

The thirteen House Republicans who voted yes on Biden’s infrastructure bill are facing backlash from their conservative colleagues, while others have questioned the GOP leadership over the results of the vote.

Congress passed the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act with a narrow victory of 228 to 206 late on Friday after months of internal debate and stall tactics within the Democratic caucus. Because the Senate passed the bill in August, it now only awaits President Joe Biden’s signature to become law.

Six progressive Democrats kept their promise to vote against the bill unless the Senate first passed their pet projects in the larger budget reconciliation bill. For this reason, Democrats only passed the infrastructure legislation with the assistance of Republican votes. These votes undermined GOP Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy’s prediction that the vote was doomed if it relied on GOP votes. 

Just last week, the minority leader from California said in an interview, “I don’t expect few, if any [Republicans], to vote for it, if it comes to the floor today. I don’t know if it’ll make it to the floor.”

FISM News previously reported, “A majority of conservative lawmakers have vigorously objected to the bill, citing that only about a quarter of the funding is designated for actual physical infrastructure projects such as roads, bridges, water pipes, and broadband internet, with the bulk of the spending earmarked for Green New Deal programs like subsidies for solar- and wind-powered energy and electric vehicles.”

The Republicans who voted yes are now facing backlash and criticism from members of their own party. The representatives who sided with the Democrats on the vote are Don Bacon (Neb.), Brian Fitzpatrick (Pa.), Andrew Gabarino (N.Y.), Anthony Gonzalez (Ohio), John Katko (N.Y.), Adam Kinzinger (Ill.), Nicole Malliotakis (N.Y.), David McKinley (W.Va.), Tom Reed (N.Y.), Chris Smith (N.J.), Fred Upton (Mich.), Jeff Van Drew (N.J.), and Don Young (Ala.).

After the vote was announced, Rep. Matt Gaetz tweeted out his displeasure with those who voted in favor of the bill:

Representative Andy Biggs (R-Ariz.) likened the passage of the infrastructure bill to a “slap in the face to every American citizen.” He later tweeted, “At this point, I’m not sure who the American people are more mad at. The Democrats for promoting their socialist “infrastructure” plan. Or the RINOs who pushed it past the finish line.”

Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene (Ga.) called the dissenters “traitors” who are “China-First and America-Last.” Greene also tweeted out the office phone numbers for twelve of the thirteen and singled out Katko as the “leader of the Insurrection” for his history of voting against his party to assist Democrats with their bigger wins. This included voting to impeach former President Donald Trump.

North Carolina congressman Madison Cawthorn wrote, “There’s a lot of Democrats who call themselves Republicans in the U.S. House.”

Meanwhile, Congressman Brendan Boyle (D-Pa.)  shared a list of the dissenting GOP voters while pointing out the humiliating loss the vote makes for McCarthy:

A scathing National Review op-ed called for Republican voters of “this monstrosity” to be “primaried and defeated” while retiring members “should be shamed for the rest of their lives.” The piece also said, “Representative Kevin McCarthy should be ousted from leadership for his inability to keep his caucus together on such a crucial vote.”

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