Following the passage of the payroll tax cut and unemployment benefits extension, Democratic Michigan Rep. John Conyers, the ranking member on the Judiciary Committee, explained to The Daily Caller how he had not read the legislation prior to voting for it.
Conyers was asked by TheDC why he supported the legislation when the payroll tax cut portion of the bill was not funded by spending cuts.
“Well, I could vote yes or I could vote no. I voted yes because I didn’t want a payroll tax to be restored on working people and besides I wanted the doc fix in there too,” Conyers told TheDC on Capitol Hill Friday.
TheDC also asked Conyers if he read the bill before voting for it.
“I did not read the bill before it was voted on. I’ve been following it for about 8 months,” he said.
On whether or not the final version of the bill should have been available for at least three days before the vote, Conyers said “look, you can have two days, three days or four days. Yes, absolutely.”
As of Thursday afternoon, House Speaker John Boehner said the final version of the legislation had not been filed.
“First we’ve got to get the bill filed. There’s a technical issue – drafting issue that’s trying to be resolved but we’re working with members on both sides of the aisle to talk about how best to move forward,” said Boehner Thursday.
The $144 billion legislation passed the GOP-controlled House and Democratic-controlled Senate Friday afternoon.