Former “Daily Show” host Jon Stewart is once again ripping Senate Republicans, this time for voting against a veterans health bill and celebrating after previously voting for it.
The bill would provide mandatory funding for healthcare for veterans who were exposed to burn pits. Republicans had no problem joining Democrats to pass the bill earlier this month, but decided to switch their vote in retaliation against Democrats for striking a deal on climate change legislation.
After the vote, some Republicans celebrated killing the bill on the Senate floor by fist-bumping each other. Again, the bill they are happy about killing is a veterans healthcare bill. Yet these same Republicans dare to claim that they support veterans.
Stewart, who has previously successfully advocated on behalf of 9/11 first responders after Republicans refused to pass healthcare legislation to take care of them, is now advocating for veterans in an effort to shame Republicans into doing the right thing.
The new public face in support of the bill appeared on MSNBC this week to take Republicans to the woodshed for lying about the bill, taking particular aim at Senators Ted Cruz (R-Texas) and Pat Toomey (R-Pa.) for claiming Democrats pulled a switcheroo by making the funding mandatory instead of discretionary.
“I want you to fact-check that while I am sitting here,” Stewart told Morning Joe host Willie Geist. “Did Ted Cruz and all those other Republicans who voted yes on this bill and then switched their vote to no, was that the provision of how the bill was paid for when they voted yes?”
Indeed, the bill always featured the mandatory funding provision. That’s because Republicans would be able to stop funding later on if it were discretionary.
“Now Toomey, on the other hand, he’s been against this all along, at least he’s been a consistent dick, but that’s not — this is nothing new,” Stewart continued. “This is how it was paid for: the fix in the House was a tiny constitutional provision. This is the same bill that they passed, and by the way, all that nonsense that Toomey says about $400 billion of a slush fund that opens the door to that possibility. You know who can close that door? The Senate and the House because they have the power of appropriation.”
Stewart then shamed Republicans for celebrating the blocking of the bill.
“They always have money for the war with no guardrails and no oversight, but all of a sudden they get religion on a healthcare bill for veterans,” Stewart concluded. “And I’ll say this, the most despicable part of this whole thing is watching on the Senate floor Ted Cruz fist-bumping and then patting each other on the back when they blocked this bill. Josh Hawley and Pat Toomey celebrating their victory over veterans with cancer. Way to go, guys! You finally handed it to ‘big veteran with cancer.’ Well done!”
Here’s the video via YouTube:
Republicans can no longer claim to support veterans. If they really cared about the health of our veterans, they would vote unanimously to pass this bill. Instead, they are opposing it because they don’t want President Joe Biden and the Democrats to check off another item on their legislative agenda. If Americans needed another reason to vote against Republicans in November and beyond, they now have one.
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