There is still $138 billion left unspent in Paycheck Protection Program funds from the CARES Act passed earlier this year, but House Speaker Nancy Pelosi is refusing to allow businesses "to take another bite at that apple," Rep. Michael Waltz said Wednesday.
"(It is) ready to go out to small businesses that are struggling and never coming back unless they can get another loan," the Florida Republican said on Fox News' "Fox and Friends." "Again, this is already spent money, already appropriated, ready to go right now, yet she is standing on her all or nothing, my way or the highway, $4 trillion progressive wish list."
The House this week is to take up legislation on legalizing marijuana and a bill seeking to ban breeding and private ownership of big cats, reports Fox News. Waltz said there are more vital measures at hand that should be on the floor.
"We haven't voted on a defense bill," he said. "We haven't voted on coronavirus relief, another round of stimulus, paycheck protection, opening schools (or) helping with additional PPE. None of that can get voted on but this stuff can."
Meanwhile, Waltz said in his state, Gov. Ron DeSantis deserves "a lot of credit" for keeping schools and businesses open.
"He mandated that you had to, particularly in our blue inner cities, that you are going to keep your schools open, period," said Waltz. "It was absolutely the right call ... the approach he took was that families make that choice."
School closures affect blue-collar families the most, he added, and that makes him angry because those parents can't stay home with their children when schools are closed.
"What do they do when they have an 8-year-old in front of a computer all day long?" he said. "They can't go to work? That is who is getting hurt the most. We have got to get our schools back open across the country."
Sandy Fitzgerald ✉
Sandy Fitzgerald has more than three decades in journalism and serves as a general assignment writer for Newsmax covering news, media, and politics.
© 2025 Newsmax. All rights reserved.