By Breanna Francis, The Journal
MARTINSBURG, W.Va. — Continuing to advocate for bipartisanship, U.S. Sen. Shelley Moore Capito, R-W.Va., said unless the nonemergency spending in the House-amended COVID-19 relief bill is addressed, and funding is targeted directly toward relief efforts, she will be voting, “No.”
In a Zoom virtual press conference held Thursday afternoon, Capito provided an update on the legislative work taking place on Capitol Hill, the most notable of discussions centering on providing direct relief to Americans facing COVID-19-related struggles – an issue she said is continuing to be derailed by “wish-list” spending added to the legislation.
“The Senate will be considering the COVID-19 relief package that the House sent over, a $1.9 trillion package… but only 9% of the bill actually goes to the health-related aspects of COVID relief,” Capito said. “There is a whole trillion dollars that has extraneous expenditures and, honestly, I don’t think meets the standard of rising to an emergency, as such, as the president and others have said that this is what we need.”
Capito said while she likes the individual, unemployment and school funding outlined in the bill, she said she would have preferred an entirely targeted relief package instead of a “massive spending bill that goes to the wish list that many of the more liberal members have been interested in over the years.” …