Sixth District Perspectives with Congressman Ben Cline – December 13, 2021

Following last week’s crisis of passing a Continuing Resolution, the thirteenth since I came to Congress, the House once again passed legislation increasing the debt limit, while claiming their manufactured crisis demanded acquiescence. Further, when the Senate acts on the measure, we will be back in Washington to finalize the increase. Operating under these sorts of circumstances is simply not how Congress should operate. And while it’s doubtful, I hope the Speaker uses this additional session day to vote on the bipartisan legislation passed in the Senate on Wednesday to nullify President Biden’s unconstitutional vaccine mandate. We also saw the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office confirm this week what we already knew, that the Democrats Build Back Bankrupt plan will cost $5 trillion.

Also, this week, I had the opportunity to meet with Governor-Elect Youngkin, along with the rest of the Virginia Congressional Delegation, to discuss ways in which we can benefit the lives of all who call the Commonwealth home. Additionally, I was pleased to recognize the Boys and Girls Clubs of Harrisonburg and Rockingham County, which will celebrate its 25th anniversary at the end of the month. Following next week’s session, I look forward to spending the next few weeks traveling the District meeting with those who I am honored to represent.

Good Governance:
The American people deserve a transparent and bipartisan legislative process – but that’s not what they are receiving. Unfortunately, my colleagues on the other side of the aisle intentionally manufacture crises by waiting until deadlines are immediately upon us before addressing the issue at hand. When Congress is up against a deadline, it gives the Democrat Majority leverage to limit opposition and allows them to ram bad bills through this House – claiming it was a necessity. The Left has done it with multiple Continuing Resolutions, they did it with the Surface Transportation Reauthorization, and now, after having already punted responsibility once on the issue, they are doing it again on raising the debt ceiling. The House is poised to vote on raising the debt ceiling this coming Tuesday, just one day before the United States will default on its debt. We must stop creating fires like this where none should exist. Democrats legislating in this manner creates uncertainty and spooks the market, which contributes to the Biden Economic crisis and soaring energy costs. For our economy to truly recover, we must ensure the government is working efficiently and effectively on behalf of the American people.

Vaccine Mandates:
As businesses struggle to find employees and grocery store shelves sit empty, President Biden should be doing everything possible to encourage Americans to show up to work. Instead, his Administration plans to implement an unconstitutional vaccine mandate beginning January 4, 2022, that would force millions of Americans out of work based on a health care decision. This is unacceptable as the federal government should never force individuals to choose between their job and a shot.

Fortunately, steps are being taken to combat this government invasiveness. on the judicial side, federal courts have paused the President’s vaccine mandate in several jurisdictions. Most recently, a federal judge in Georgia issued a ruling that halts vaccine mandates nationwide for federal contractors. While victories in the courts are a big step in the right direction, legislative action is also necessary to ensure the rights of Americans are not violated. That is why this week I was pleased to see the Senate pass a bipartisan bill that would nullify President Biden’s mandate in its entirety.

It is my hope that Speaker Pelosi will soon follow suit. However, until that time I will continue fighting against this government overreach to protect our citizens, and most importantly, Sixth District residents. Below are several pieces of legislation I have cosponsored on the matter.

• HR 5860 – Keeping Our COVID19 HEROES Employed Act
o This bill would exempt essential workers from COVID-19 vaccine mandates imposed by the federal government, a public or private federal contractor, a private entity receiving federal funds, or a private entity receiving COVID-19 relief funds appropriated by Congress.

• HR 3860 – Military COVID Vaccine
o This bill would prohibit the use of federal funds to require a member of the Armed Forces to receive a COVID-19 vaccination. The bill also prohibits adverse action (e.g., punishment) being taken against a member of the Armed Forces because the member refuses to receive a COVID-19 vaccination.

• HR 5892 – Our Veterans Earned It Act
o This bill would ensure that no service member loses their VA benefits for choosing not to get the COVID-19 vaccine.

• HJ Res 65 – Congressional Review Act Resolution
o This resolution would nullify OSHA’s emergency temporary standard mandating vaccines for private-sector employers.

• HR 5811 – No Vaccine Mandate Act
o Amends the Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2022 to prohibit the use of funds related to any rule requiring a COVID-19 vaccination.

Build Back Broke:
President Biden told the American people for months that his Far-Left Socialist Spending Spree, known as the Build Back Better Act (BBB) was fully paid for. That was a lie. On Friday, the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office (CBO) released the true cost of the massive Build Back Bankrupt bill. According to the CBO, if the 150+ new programs and expansions in Biden’s bill were made permanent, it would cost Americans $4.9 trillion, and add more than $3 trillion to the deficit. And make no mistake about it, President Biden and Democrats fully intend to make these 150+ new programs and expansions permanent. At a time when Americans are facing an inflation rate that hasn’t been this high since 1982, artificially injecting trillions into the U.S. economy is the exact opposite of what we should be doing and will only cause prices to increase even more.

Fighting for Virginia:
Once a month the entire Virginia congressional delegation, Republicans and Democrats, come together to share lunch and ideas. While we may often disagree on policy, these forums allow us to build better working relationships with one another that can be beneficial on nonpartisan issues. This week, we welcomed Governor-Elect Youngkin to our monthly lunch. This was a great opportunity to discuss ways in which we can work together at the state and federal levels to benefit the lives of those who are fortunate enough to call the Commonwealth home. One issue I discussed at length with the Governor-Elect was vaccine mandates. We both agreed that mandates would be harmful to both Virginia employers and employees. Further, we had a good conversation about the importance of lowering taxes to help promote economic growth and keep more money in folks’ pockets. I look forward to keeping the line of communication open with the Governor-Elect over the next four years to make certain we are both serving our constituencies well.

NDAA:
While I strongly support our troops and believe they should have every necessary resource to ensure their and our country’s safety, I could not support this year’s National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA). First and foremost, the legislation fails to hold the Pentagon or anyone in the Biden Administration accountable for the disastrous withdrawal from Afghanistan, which resulted in the deaths of 13 brave Americans. Further, the NDAA passed through Congress continued to fund policies that attempt to racially divide our troops allowing them to be little more than social experiments. Moreover, the bill wastes taxpayer funds to advance the Green New Deal through climate literacy trainings and mandates certain military instillations to achieve energy, water, and waste net-zero by 2035 – marking yet another political provision included in the legislation. The NDAA also fails to protect the constitutional rights of our service members by allowing them to be discharged for not receiving the COVID-19 vaccine. No service member should be forced out of the military for making a personal health care decision. For these reasons, in addition to the fact that Members of Congress were given less than a day to review the 2,100-page bill text, I could not in good conscious support the NDAA. However, rest assured that I will continue to fight on behalf of our men and women in uniform at every opportunity I am given.

Boys and Girls Clubs of Harrisonburg and Rockingham County:
This week I took to the House Floor to recognize the Boys & Girls Clubs of Harrisonburg and Rockingham County, which will celebrate its 25th anniversary on December 21st. Since its founding in 1995, this organization has grown from just one location to now more than seven throughout the region. For the past two and a half decades, they have strived to ensure children in the Shenandoah Valley have a safe, inclusive, and supportive environment to call home after school. They are committed to fulfilling their mission to help mold our region’s youth into productive, caring, responsible citizens through programs focused on academic success, healthy lifestyles, good character, and citizenship. Serving more than 900 kids annually, ages five to eighteen, for the past quarter-century, the positive contribution the group has had on the Valley’s youth is immeasurable. I congratulate the organization on its first 25 years of success and wish them many more. Our community is forever grateful for all they do.

COVID-19 Update:
This week in Virginia there was an average of 27.6 cases of COVID-19 per every 100,000 residents. This is up from an average of 18.3 cases from one week prior. This week’s positivity rate was 8.1%, up from 6.8% from last week. For more information, click here.

Thank you for the opportunity to serve as your Congressman. If my office can ever be of assistance, please contact my Washington office at (202) 225-5431.

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