In the News

Congressman Gerald E. Connolly (D-VA) issued the following statement on the Cromnibus funding package.

“The bill before the House today is not a perfect bill, and certainly not the bill I would have written. For me, and many of my colleagues, this represents another “hold-your-nose vote.” But it does represent some modicum of compromise that I hope carries Congress into a more productive New Year.

“This package ensures that funding levels in the next fiscal year are more robust than we could hope for, and expect, from a GOP majority in both the House and Senate next Congress.

“It also protects critical investments in our shared Northern Virginia priorities, specifically, maintaining the federal government’s $150 million commitment to Metro in partnership with Virginia, Maryland, and DC, expanding investments in research and development and medical research funding, and offering some budget certainty for our Northern Virginia contracting community that provides critical services to the federal government.

“And, after years of enduring pay freezes, furloughs, and contributing more than $114 billion in deficit reduction – sacrifices no other group was asked to do -- federal employees will finally receive a pay raise. I will continue to push Congress to pass my FAIR Act legislation that would provide federal employees the true compensation they deserve, and I hope this is a signal of the end to the House majority’s unrelenting political demagoguery of our federal workforce.

“While both sides of the aisle were forced to make sacrifices for this compromise, it troubles me that the House majority was once again unwilling to set aside its own ideological agenda.

“House Republicans continued their assault on the environment, cutting funding to EPA by more than $2.2 billion from 2010 levels, almost a 21% reduction, and scaling back Clean Water Act protections. They’ve slashed more than $345.6 million from the IRS, leaving billions of uncollected tax revenue -- and lost deficit reduction -- on the table. They’ve furthered their efforts to hand over our elections to the highest bidder by weakening campaign finance legislation. They once again refuse to give the District of Columbia basic autonomy over its own finances and governance. And they’ve set up inevitable gridlock on important border security and immigration challenges by refusing to fully fund the Department of Homeland Security. These don’t represent our Northern Virginia values.

“On foreign affairs, this bill is an equally mixed bag. It contains essential funding for the fight against ISIL and our efforts to stem the spread of Ebola. It also enforces a policy of non-recognition with regard to Russian sovereignty over Crimea that I have long-championed and believe to be the foundation of U.S. policy towards the Russia-invoked crisis in Ukraine. However, this bill allows military assistance to continue to flow to the el-Sisi government without making progress on human rights or strengthening Egyptian democratic institutions.    

“This is a “hold-your-nose vote" for many of us. There is much to celebrate in this bill, and there is much to reject. Absent a perfect world, however, I had to weigh two basic questions: Can we afford to risk another government shutdown, and will the budget numbers and policy riders improve in the next, all Republican controlled Congress? My answer to both questions is a decisive No. Accordingly, I voted for the omnibus compromise for fiscal 2015.”