The U.S. senators from Florida and Georgia voted along party lines, like all of their fellow senators, for the $1.9 trillion COVID-19 relief bill that was approved by a 50-49 margin Saturday.
The measure follows five earlier ones totaling about $4 trillion that Congress has enacted since last spring and comes amid signs of a potential turnaround.
Here’s what the senators from Georgia and Florida had to say Saturday about their party-line votes:
Sen. Jon Ossoff, D-Georgia
Thanks to Georgia voters, the United States Senate just passed the most generous economic relief package for working and middle class families in American history.
— Jon Ossoff (@ossoff) March 6, 2021
Thank you to all who wrote postcards, made calls, knocked doors, texted friends, and chipped in a few bucks to deliver victory in Georgia and COVID relief for the country. THANK YOU.
— Jon Ossoff (@ossoff) March 6, 2021
Sen. Raphael Warnock, D-Georgia
This historic COVID-19 relief bill will bring billions of dollars in aid to Georgia, help our economy recover and give families the support they need to get through this pandemic.
— Senator Reverend Raphael Warnock (@ReverendWarnock) March 6, 2021
I’m proud to vote yes.
Relief is finally on the way Georgia.
— Senator Reverend Raphael Warnock (@ReverendWarnock) March 6, 2021
Sen. Rick Scott, R-Florida
Scott released the following statement after Senate Democrats voted to pass the $1.9 trillion spending package, of which, Scott said, less than 10% actually goes to help fight COVID.
“Washington is completely dysfunctional. I’ve said all along that I want targeted relief for families and businesses suffering from the pandemic. That’s why Republicans just spent the entire night trying to work with Senate Democrats to get something done that will actually help Floridians and Americans across our nation who are still struggling due to COVID-19. But that’s not what the Democrats wanted. This was never about helping the American people. Instead, they’re using trillions of American taxpayer dollars, under the guise of COVID relief, to fund their liberal priorities and pay back their blue state Governor pals. They really should be ashamed of this political theater.
“Our nation is $28 trillion in debt. With the passage of this bill, Senate Democrats have increased the debt to $30 trillion, knowing that they and President Biden have no plan to address it or its devastating consequences for American families. At this rate and the direction Democrats are taking us, there is no way our nation will ever be able to pay off this unsustainable debt without significant change. It’s time to get serious about what this means for our nation moving forward. I will never stop fighting to ensure accountability to American taxpayers and get Washington’s insane spending under control.”
News4Jax is waiting on a statement/response from Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Florida.