COVID-19 Stimulus Package

Congress on Monday passed a $900 billion COVID-19 stimulus package that no one read before they voted on it. Senator Rand Paul, who voted against the bill, wrote: "Deficit busting bill will be 5,593 pages! If there are 250 words per page, then that's 1,398,250 words. If Congresspeople read at the American average of 300 words/min, then a Congressperson might read this in 4,660 minutes or 77.68 hours!" Congress was given only two hours before having to vote on the legislation. Even Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez tweeted "This isn't governance. It's hostage-taking".

The bill contains hundreds of unrelated legislative items negotiated by leadership for special interest groups. It is politics at its worst. Here are some of the expenditures contained in the bill...

• $300,000,000 for Migrant and Refugee Assistance
• $10,000 per person for student loan bailout
• $100,000,000 to NASA
• $20,000,000,000 to the U.S. Postal Service
• $300,000,000 to the Endowment for the Arts
• $15,000,000 for Veterans Employment Training 
• $30,000,000,000 for the Department of Education stabilization fund
• $200,000,000 to Safe Schools Emergency Response to Violence Program
• $300,000,000 to Public Broadcasting 
• $500,000,000 to Museums and Libraries
• $720,000,000 to Social Security Administration
• $25,000,000 for Cleaning supplies for the Capitol Building
• $7,500,000 to the Smithsonian for additional salaries
• $35,000,000 to the Kennedy Center for Performing Arts
• $25,000,000 for additional salary for House of Representatives
• $3,000,000,000 upgrade to the IT department at the Veterans Administration
• $315,000,000 for State Department Diplomatic Programs
• $95,000,000 for the Agency for International Development
• $300,000,000 for International Disaster Assistance
• $90,000,000 for the Peace Corps
• $13,000,000 to Howard University
• $9,000,000 Misc. Senate expenses
• $100,000,000 to Essential air carriers 
• $40,000,000,000 goes to the Take Responsibility to Workers and Families Act
• $1,000,000,000 Airlines Recycle and Save Program 
• $25,000,000 to the Federal Aviation Administration for administrative costs 
• $492,000,000 to National Railroad Passenger Corporation (Amtrak) 
• $526,000,000 Grants to Amtrak 
• $25,000,000,000 for Transit Infrastructure 
• $3,000,000 Maritime Administration
• $2,500,000 Public and Indian Housing 
• $5,000,000 Community Planning and Development 
• $2,500,000 Office of Housing

Even foreign governments are getting billions of dollars. Among the payouts: $1.4 billion for the Asia Reassurance Initiative Act, $1.3 billion to Egypt, $700 million to Sudan, $135 million to Burma, $130 million to Nepal, and  $85 million to Cambodia. Israel will also haul in $500 million and Ukraine will get nearly the same. If this money were to go to American citizens, we would be getting a lot more than a $600 stimulus check. And lastly, why are we giving this money to foreign entities when our country is running a national debt of almost 28 trillion dollars?