McClintock’s callous vote on coronavirus bill shows he’s been in Washington too long

Rep. Tom McClintock’s cruel and despicable vote against a bipartisan economic relief bill to help workers and businesses suffering due to the coronavirus makes one thing clear: He has lost touch with reality.

Only 40 of the House of Representatives’ 435 members voted against the bill. McClintock, a Republican from Elk Grove, is one of them. Both House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and President Donald Trump put aside partisan enmity to unite in support of the economic stimulus.

House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, R-Bakersfield, and Rep. Devin Nunes, R-Tulare, also supported the bill. They did this because the federal government has a responsibility to help protect workers and businesses from the coronavirus crisis’ economic fallout.

“The bill, passed by the House last week and will soon be considered by the Senate, is a sweeping package that includes assurances of paid emergency leave for people affected by the coronavirus outbreak,” wrote David Lightman of McClatchy DC. “It also has help for states to pay unemployment benefits and Medicaid, and funds food aid for seniors and lower income people.”

Not good enough for McClintock. He’s apparently too caught up in his obscure ideological daydreams to do what’s right for his constituents. He’s not too worried about the working people, small businesses and senior citizens in his district, where one elderly woman has already died of the virus.

Democratic candidate Brynne Kennedy, who is challenging McClintock for his seat, blasted his vote.

“Tom McClintock voted to put communities at risk, to undermine our public health system, and to shortchange workers and businesses across our district – and our country. His vote was an attack on common sense and common decency,” she said, according to McClatchy DC.

McClintock defended his vote by projecting phantom worries about the potential for people to “game the system” and receive aid. Game the system? Is this the same Tom McClintock who moved all the way from Southern California to run in District 4? Is this the same Tom McClintock who despises government yet has drawn a taxpayer-funded check for decades?

McClintock also said the bill “actively encourages unemployment,” ostensibly because he thinks families struggling to pay their bills in a full-blown pandemic would abandon their livelihoods in exchange for welfare.

COVID-19 presents us with an unprecedented crisis. Global public health agree that the United States is at a critical tipping point when it comes to preventing hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of people from dying. Humans have no natural immunity and there’s no vaccine.

Coronavirus testing is limited, but there are signs the disease is spreading widely through California. That’s why our government and our communities are taking such drastic steps to slow the virus’ spread. The bill would ensure free coronavirus testing, yet McClintock opposed it.

At a time when Americans are pulling together to confront the coronavirus threat as a unified nation, McClintock’s vote makes it clear he’s not on the team. In the midst of a national emergency, he’s downplaying its impact and voting to deny his constituents a basic economic lifeline.

Oh, but don’t worry about losing your job, paying your bills or putting food on the table, says McClintock: “At some point, the infection rate will peak and decline. As it does, factories will reopen, employees will get back to work and life will return to normal.”

How are people supposed to survive until then?

McClintock has clearly been in Washington too long. He has lost touch with the concerns of real people. Voters in his district should remember his callous disregard and vote to bring him home on Nov. 3.

People get the government they deserve, and the people of the 4th Congressional District deserve better than Tom McClintock.

Editor’s note: This editorial has been updated to reflect McClintock’s move from Southern California to run in District 4 and his continued employment by the government despite his anti-government stances.

This story was originally published March 17, 2020 at 5:00 AM.