Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) in a Monday tweet criticized the limited time lawmakers have been given to read the $2.5 trillion stimulus bill before they are expected to vote on Monday.
“Congress is expected to vote on the second largest bill in US history *today* – $2.5 trillion – and as of about 1pm, members don’t even have the legislative text of it yet,” Ocasio-Cortez said on Twitter.
Congress has been working for weeks on a coronavirus relief bill that is being packaged with an omnibus spending package for the next fiscal year.
Congressional leaders announced a deal on the package Sunday, and votes are expected Monday. The text of the legislation was posted Monday afternoon, giving lawmakers little time to review it.
Ocasio-Cortez was not the only lawmaker to express frustration.
Republican Rep. Morgan Griffith (Va.) tweeted on Monday, “While waiting on the omnibus spending bill over the weekend, I asked if even just part of the text was available to read and was told no. I’ve gotten a bootleg back alley copy of the bill today to start reading.”
Griffith later added that his “bootleg” copy was just over 3,000 pages of the roughly 5,600-page bill.
“Looks like this is going to be another ‘we have to pass the bill to find out what’s in it’ kind of vote,” wrote Rep. Ken Buck (R-Colo.) on Twitter with a video that appeared to show copies of the bill being pushed through the Capitol on a cart.
“It’s not good enough to hear about what’s in the bill. Members of Congress need to see & read the bills we are expected to vote on,” wrote Ocasio-Cortez in another tweet. “I know it’s ‘controversial’ & I get in trouble for sharing things like this, but the people of this country deserve to know. They deserve better.”