Biden’s keeping a list of Republicans — and NC’s Cawthorn is on it. Here’s why.
President Joe Biden called out congressional Republicans, including a freshman representative from North Carolina, for voting against his COVID-19 relief package and then touting some of its provisions to their constituents.
During a speech on the economy in Ohio on Thursday, Biden pulled out a list of 13 Republicans. He did not name them in his speech.
But a photographer captured a picture of the list, which included Rep. Madison Cawthorn, a freshman representative from Western North Carolina.
“Even my Republican friends in Congress, not a single one of them voted for the rescue plan. I’m not going to embarrass anyone of them, but I have here a list of how back in their districts they’re bragging about the rescue plan,” Biden said. “... They touted grants to community health care centers. Some people have no shame.
“But I’m happy. I’m happy they know that it benefited their constituents. That’s OK with me. But if you’re going to try to take credit for what you’ve done, don’t get in the way of what we still need to do.”
The photo was taken by Doug Mills of The New York Times. After each name was a specific provision of the relief bill that they “touted.”
“Rep. Madison Cawthorn (R-North Carolina) touted grants to community health centers in his district,” the list said.
Cawthorn, a first-term representative, sent two tweets on March 30 about grants awarded by the Department of Health and Human Services to four community health centers in the 11th Congressional District.
“Happy to announce that NC-11 was awarded grants from the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services,” Cawthorn wrote.
The money for the grants was authorized in the $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan, Biden’s top legislative accomplishment, which passed Congress without a single Republican vote in either the House or Senate.
Biden signed the legislation into law on March 12.
A Cawthorn spokesman defended the congressman’s tweet even amid his opposition to the bill in late March.
“Rep. Cawthorn uses his official Twitter account to post information relevant to his constituents in NC-11,” spokesman Micah Bock said in a statement to The Charlotte Observer on March 31. “This may include federal grant information, vaccination information, public announcements or other information that is useful to the people he represents.
“Oftentimes this means providing relevant federal information on proposals that the Congressman does not support. There are portions of the American Rescue Plan that benefit NC-11, however, bills are not passed in portions, they are passed entirely or not at all, and this bill does significantly more harm than good.”
Bobbie Richardson, the chairwoman of the North Carolina Democratic Party, criticized Cawthorn for the messages in late March.
“You can’t have your cake and vote against it, too. That’s exactly what Rep. Cawthorn is doing by shamelessly taking credit for a bill that he tirelessly attacked and voted against,” she said in a statement.
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This story was originally published May 27, 2021 at 5:39 PM with the headline "Biden’s keeping a list of Republicans — and NC’s Cawthorn is on it. Here’s why.."
