Last week, the US Congress passed an omnibus funding bill that would help fund the federal government through the fiscal year and avoid a partial government shutdown.

Iowa’s Fourth Congressional District Representative Randy Feenstra, along with the other two Iowa Republican Congressional members, voted against the $1.66 trillion bill. Feenstra tells Raccoon Valley Radio why he opposed the bill.

“We have a $31 trillion debt and we want to add ten percent more to our budget. This just doesn’t work. You think about it, we put already $6 trillion on a credit card on all these other things, on infrastructure, covid relief, and all those other stuff. There’s so much cash in the system right now that to me this was the perfect time to create a budget that was neutral or lower than last year. And when we (the Republicans) get into the majority (next Congress) I am going to fight to try to get a balanced budget instead of lowering our debt, it’s got to happen.”

Sources say that while the House passed the bill along party lines, several Republican senators joined Senate Democrats in its passage, one that did not include Senators Joni Ernst and Chuck Grassley.

In a statement released by President Joe Biden, he called the bipartisan bill helpful to fund many of the countries priorities, which includes cutting-edge research advancement for cancer and other diseases, increasing law enforcement funding, along with assistance to Ukraine and military veterans for their benefits.