Republican Study Committee Chairman Jim Banks slammed the latest framework for Democrats’ sweeping social spending bill in a memo sent to members of his caucus on Thursday evening.
The Indiana Republican pointed to 31 policy proposals conservatives oppose, alleging the measure will lead to increased energy prices, higher taxes and “perpetuates the labor shortage.”
The memo comes shortly after Democrats released an updated bill that more closely reflects the scaled-back proposal released by the White House on Thursday.
President Biden encouraged members of the House Democratic caucus to get on board with the framework and support a $1.2 trillion bipartisan infrastructure bill during their meeting at the Capitol on Thursday morning as the party continues negotiations on the measure.
“Now we have new bill text. And we wanted to give you an update on what’s in and what’s out. Because it’s not about the topline ‘pricetag’ (and it’s NOT $0). It’s about the underlying policies within the bill. And there are 31 devastating policies that would wreck America still left in the Democrats’ reconciliation package,” Banks wrote.
“Remember, each one of these bullets is enough to vote against the bill. Together, it’s still mind-blowingly corrupt and will turn our country into a sociality nation overnight. As Democrats fall on their face yet again, we need to do our part and loudly oppose this bill and make it as uncomfortable for the so-called ‘moderates’ in the Democrat party to support this package.”
Banks pushed back on language related to the Green New Deal included in the draft legislation, alleging that $8 billion would be spent to commission “climate police” to “conduct progressive activism,” and argued green energy tax credits would be provided to the wealthy “who can afford expensive electric vehicles and other ‘green’ innovative.”
The memo also took aim at language to increase the annual limits on immigration “by adding unused employment based visas on top of the existing 226,000 family-preference visa floor” and to “give lottery visas to anyone who was denied one due to the pandemic or because of President Trump’s immigration policies.”
Banks went on to argue that the measure would exacerbate the chip shortage by “the conversion of the Postal Service and General Services Administration vehicle fleet from internal combustion engines to electric engines” and increase “energy dependence on OPEC, Russia and China” by unwinding provisions on the GOP’s Tax Cut and Jobs act.
Banks called on GOP lawmakers to take aim at moderate Democrats who get on board with the bill as Republicans look to flip control of the House, encouraging them to “embarrass and shame them for what they’re doing to this country.”
“We are at a crossroads. Are we going to let the Democrats fundamentally change the country quietly, or will we fight them every step of the way?” he wrote.
“This is a moment to be loud and be bold. This isn’t legislating—it’s looting. And working-class Americans are the ones they’re stealing from. As their defenders in Congress, we need to use the platform they’ve afforded to us to embarrass and shame them for what they’re doing to this country. We do that by highlighting the policies contained in this document.”
