Debate continued on two bills from the prior day:
H.R. 185 was the only bill voted on today and that included votes on these five amendments:
Subsequent to amendment voting, there was a procedural vote to send the bill back to committee. Molinaro voted NO with all Republicans.
Finally, H.R. 185 was voted on by the House and passed largely along party lines. Molinaro voted YES with all Republicans.
Paul Gosar's H. Res. 7 is consistent with and largely duplicative of the bill passed the previous day ending the Covid-19 state of emergency. President Biden has already indicated that the state of emergency will conclude mid-year to allow for a careful transition for impacted citizens.
Molinaro voted FOR this resolution, which passed with support of 11 Democrats and all Republicans.
Under current law, medical practitioners and other employees providing services to patients under Medicare and Medicaid are required to be Covid-19 vaccinated, unless they have a medical exemption. These regulations were enacted to protect those patients who might be in the care of a hospital, nursing home or under professional home care. The rule was additionally implemented to help save the lives and mitigate the deficit of medical providers across the country, as that community was hit with infection. This bill would end the vaccine requirement and prohibit one in the future.
Debate on this bill was fraught with vaccine disinformation and anti-vaxxer sentiment from the Republican supporters, and passed on a largely party-line vote. Molinaro voted FOR this bill.
H.R. 382 would terminate the state of emergency that was instituted under the former President to handle Covid. This bill was moot due to President Biden's prior announcement that the state of emergency would be lifted mid-year to allow for a careful and efficient realignment of pandemic services (including the movement of millions of Americans off of Medicaid), but Republican sponsors decided to move the bill for immediate termination nonetheless.
This was the first time Molinaro spoke on the floor of the House, and you can read his comments in the record above (click to enlarge). Constituents will immediately recognize the tone and message, and critics would note his lack of recognition that the state of emergency was already in the process of being lifted. Molinaro voted FOR this bill, which passed along party lines.
This vote was taken to accelerate and consolidate voting for several Covid-related bills Molinaro voted FOR the resolution twice in party-line votes. He also voted against two motions to send the day's legislation to committee for review, also resolved in party-line votes.
Molinaro voted FOR this bill that looks to undermine the availability of abortions in New York and other states. It is a violation of his stated promise that he would not support legislation that superseded or conflicted with New York's existing laws. Molinaro has said to the press that accusations he'd vote for abortion-restricting laws are "lies" since he believes regulation of abortion must be left to the states.
As background, this bill regulates a practice that is essentially nonexistent. It seeks to ensure that "infants born alive after an abortion receive the same protection of law and degree of care as any newborn." Most news reports about this issue report that experts have never heard of any case similar to those prohibited by the bill.
It's fair to say that three days into his first week, Molinaro has breached the most critical of his campaign promises, and broke any trust built with constituents who believed that he would legislate as "a moderate" on abortion.
Molinaro voted FOR this resolution that has no legislative impact. It is largely a list of vandalization reports at anti-abortion centers, political offices and two churches. The bill suggests that these events are explicitly or implicitly connected to protests of the Dobbs decision restricting abortion.
The resolution is otherwise innocuous, except for unnecessary poison pills that are likely insulting to many in the NY-19 District. The resolution disparages pro-choice Americans as "anti-life," criticizing "radical anti-life advocates." The resolution also contains the language: ". . . recognizes the sanctity of life and the important role pro-life facilities, groups, and churches play in supporting pregnant women, infants, and families;" Of course, those Americans who seek to protect choice do not believe that "pro-life groups" who seek to eliminate the right to abortion "[support] pregnant women, infants, and families." And "sanctity of life" is a well-known phrase co-opted to mean "anti-abortion."
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