The massive $1.7 trillion omnibus spending bill was flown to President Joe Biden’s St. Croix vacation spot along with White House staff for him to sign the measure into law.
The 4,000-page bill was transported on a flight even as tens of thousands of domestic airline passengers struggled to reach their destinations during the tumultuous Christmas travel season. Ironically, it held earmarks for numerous pet environmental projects championed by Democrats.
The president will ring in the new year in the tropical paradise safe in knowing that his signature prevented a government shutdown.
In a Twitter post showing Biden inking the bill, the president noted that this action ended “a year of historic progress.” He touted the package as targeting “medical research, safety, veteran health care, disaster recovery, VAWA funding, and…crucial assistance to Ukraine.”
Biden is so concerned about climate change, he's flying the Omnibus bill to St. Croix so he can sign it in the Caribbean…when he could've delayed his vacation for two days and signed it in DC.
But we all need to cut our emissions, or something https://t.co/1OGlZKSmx2
— John Hasson (@SonofHas) December 29, 2022
The Democrat added that he is “looking forward to more in 2023.” There’s no word if his plans for the new year also include reducing his carbon footprint.
Biden along with the first lady and other family members traveled to the U.S. Virgin Islands Tuesday to vacation at the residence of business moguls Bill and Connie Neville.
Last week the House of Representatives approved the sweeping bill with a split almost entirely along party lines. This came just over 10 hours before the government would have been forced into a partial shutdown without passage.
Both houses of Congress also approved a one-week measure to give the president a chance to sign the spending bill. That extended government funding through Dec. 30.
The package funded $858 billion for the Defense Department along with $772.5 billion for so-called discretionary spending. It also provided roughly $45 billion for Ukraine’s military defense against Russia.
Other provisions in the “Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2023” include revisions in the electoral vote-counting law, federal protections for pregnant employees, modifications to retirement savings regulations, and a ban on the social media app TikTok on federal devices.
And, of course, extensive climate change measures.
These measures did not prevent the use of a private jet to deliver the 4,000-page bill to Biden’s vacation spot for his signature. As vacation plans go, it is likely that far better arrangements may have been made for the president to do his job in Washington instead of the Caribbean.
