Chip Roy

            I chose U.S. Congressman Chip Roy(R-TX) as my VIP for this week because he stood tall and strong when someone need to do a job. It was Memorial Day holiday, and nearly all the members of Congress left Washington, D.C. However, the few representatives left in the House were anxious to pass a bill that would give disaster relief to areas ravaged by hurricanes in Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, and Puerto Rico and flood relief for states in the Mid-West, like Iowa and Nebraska. The proceeds from this bill would provide the funds to “repair damaged military bases, rebuild crumbling infrastructure and support farmers.” The price tag was $19.1 billion. 

            The bill had already passed the U.S. Senate with a vote of 85-8 after negotiating until late in the night. The bill went to the House where it was expected to pass with unanimous consent. The House was almost empty when Roy objected to the legislation.

            Roy knew that millions of Americans were waiting for the proceeds from the bill, but he felt that his principles were more important than political expediency. He derailed the legislation, which will not come up again until at least next week. Yet, he stood by his principles.

I’m here today primarily because if I do not object, Congress will have passed into law a bill that spends $19 billion of taxpayer money without members of Congress being present in our nation’s capital to vote on it.

            By standing on his principles Roy exposed the hypocrisy of Congress. However, he had other reasons for opposing the legislation. He did not like the fact that the bill did “nothing to address the clear national emergency and humanitarian crisis we face at our southern border.” Even though the President had requested $4.5 billion for the border emergency, there were no funds for his request in the bill.

            Another reason why Roy did not like the bill is that it included “over $19 billion that is not paid for when we are racking up approximately $100 million an hour in national debt.” Americans should be grateful to have representatives like Roy in Congress. This experience shows that there are a few members of Congress who are concerned about the growing national debt, now exceeding $22 trillion.

            I am concerned that the bill passed the Republican-led Senate on a vote of 85-8. What were those Republicans thinking? I understand that President Trump had been persuaded to sign the bill with a promise of another bill for border security. Are the Republicans lying about wanting to secure the border?