House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-CA, announced Wednesday that a “heartbreaking” move was being made to remove $15 billion of coronavirus aid funding from the $1.5 trillion Omnibus Spending Bill. Pelosi sent a Wednesday letter to House Democrats informing them that she would cut funding that would “protect against new variants of the virus and help vaccine the world.”

The House leader accused Republicans of refusing to provide the “deeply required funding” and demanded that each cent requested by Administration be offset through state, local, and federal funds.

“Because Republican insistence –and the resistance of a number of Our Members to making those offsets – we will return to the Rules Committee and remove COVID funding so that America’s families can have what they need,” she said.
She said that it was heartbreaking to see the COVID funding go. However, we must fight for COVID assistance.

In the beginning, the Joe Biden White House requested $22.5 billion for coronavirus spending. Republicans demanded an accounting of the $5 trillion in coronavirus assistance that has already been spent.

The Report of the Republican Study Committee (RSC), outlined the problems with the Omnibus Bill, which includes:
There is no new funding for border wall construction or ICE agents. The bill would instead decrease CBP funding.
This bill would spend more than $100 billion on Green New Deal initiatives and promote “racial justice through Department of Agriculture programs.

The bill also includes $100 million for environmental justice activities by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and $75 million to purchase low- or zero-emission vehicles. $26 billion in food stamp funding. This bill is the first to include earmarks. There are no protections against Chinese espionage when grants are made to the National Science Foundation. National Institutes of Health (NIH), funding increases by 10%. Provides $66 Million for the “Racial & Ethnic Approaches To Community Health (REACH)”, an $8 million increase from the previous.

Or the government will close, Congress must pass the Omnibus Spending Bill before Friday midnight. Pelosi’s decision not to remove coronavirus aid may delay the bill’s passage in the House.