House Ag Committee Ranking Member GT Thompson, R-Pa., Wednesday asked the Democrats why they turned partisan in latest ag aid measure. “It is with a measure of regret that we begin our tenure together marking up this reconciliation bill,” Thompson said. “The members of the Ag Committee have long prided ourselves on our bipartisanship.”
While the two sides have been work together, Thompson expressed disappointment at the actions being pursued on the COVID-19 aid plan. “Rather than spending time to work with Republicans, the Democratic leadership in the House and Senate are abusing the reconciliation process to jam through a very narrow, partisan agenda with the barest of majorities,” Thompson said. “Unfortunately, this flawed approach is now being adopted by this Committee. What we are marking up today was written behind closed doors; Republicans were cut out of the process. The first time we saw this $16 billion proposal was less than 48 hours ago. “
Thompson also was critical of the panel not holding any hearings on the COVID response efforts that were deployed by USDA. “We cannot fully account for what was spent and whether it was helpful,” he stated. “What's worse, we don't know what the new needs are and if we're meeting them with this package today.”