When The Good Times Roll, Congressional Republicans Try Taking Credit For What They Tried To Kill

Just before midnight on November 5, 2021, the House voted 228-206 to pass Biden’s infrastructure bill, the Invest in America Act. 13 Republicans crossed the aisle to vote with the Democrats to pass it, only 6 of whom are still in Congress:

• Don Bacon (NE)

• Brian Fitzpatrick (PA)

• Andrew Garbarino (NY)

• Nicole Malliotakis (NY)

• Chris Smith (NJ)

• Jefferson Van Drew (NJ)

For the record, the other 7:

• Anthony Gonzalez (OH)- driven out of Congress by Trump

• John Katko (NY)- driven out of Congress by Trump

• Adam Kinzinger (IL)- driven out of Congress by Trump

• David McKinley (WV)- driven out of Congress by Trump

• Tom Reed (NY)- sex scandal

• Fred Upton (MI)- driven out of Congress by Trump

• Don Young (AK)- dead

Earlier this week, the Administration announced how much each state would be getting as part of the $42.5 billion broadband infrastructure plan. Delaware’s and Rhode Island’s grants were the smallest, respectively $107,748,384.66 and $108,718,820.75, and the biggest pots of money went to Texas ($3,312,616,455.45) and California ($1,864,136,508.93). Technologically backward red states where the bill found no congressional supported tended to get much more money than blue states:

• Missouri- $1,736,302,708.39

• Alabama- $1,401,221,901.77

• Louisiana- $1,355,554,552.94

• Georgia- $1,307,214,371.30

• Mississippi- $1,203,561,563.05

Compare those to much bigger blue states that gave the bill the support it needed to get passed:

• Massachusetts- $147,422,464.39

• New Jersey- $263,689,548.65

• Minnesota- $651,839,368.20

• New York- $664,618,251.49

• Colorado- $826,522,650.41

The money is meant to close the digital divide and bring connectivity to more Americans, even those who are barely Americans like these. Politics didn’t play into the decision about where the money was allocated. So, ironically, you saw all sorts of backward Republican members of Congress who opposed the bill in DC, trying to take the credit for the benefits back home in their states. Biden highlighted reactionary MAGAt Tommy Tuberville, but he was just the tip of the iceberg. Steve Benen wrote that “Some GOP members of Mississippi’s congressional delegation this week also celebrated broadband investments from the Biden administration, which they voted against. Republican Sen. John Cornyn yesterday touted federal funds to boost broadband expansion efforts in his home state of Texas, while neglecting to mention that those funds only exist thanks to legislation that he voted to kill.”

As is always the case, the context matters. As regular readers know, for as long as there’s been a Congress, there have been lawmakers seeking federal funds for their states and districts — even when those resources came from bills they voted against. The thinking behind the appeals is obvious: They opposed the spending, but if the government is going to make the investments anyway, these members figure they might as well make the case for directing some of those funds to their own constituents.

I’m not unsympathetic to this argument. It’s certainly rooted in the American tradition.

But the details matter, too. Tuberville, for example, argued in his online missive yesterday, “Broadband is vital for the success of our rural communities and for our entire economy. [It’s] great to see Alabama receive crucial funds to boost ongoing broadband efforts.”

And therein lies the problem: If broadband is vital, and these funds are “crucial,” why did Tuberville vote against the investments?

My point is not to single out the Alabaman. I’ve been keeping an eye on this story for months, and I’ve lost count of how many congressional Republicans have touted, celebrated, taken credit for, or some combination thereof infrastructure investments that they voted against— and in several instances, condemned as “socialism.”

But the volume only makes a bad situation worse.

Yesterday former Congressman Adam Kinzinger (R-IL) tweeted “I can’t say how upsetting it is: I voted for this money and took a lot of heat from GOP. Mace didn’t but is happy to pretend she did once the heat is off.” Here’s Mace’s own tweet, misleading, as his her wont, Charleston voters.