It’s always amazing to hear anything Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-Colo.) has to say, because it’s remarkable — in a grim way — that someone so profoundly incompetent about basic issues has ended up in a position of power. After Boebert was among the many House Republicans to vote against a bill providing additional FDA funding to deal with the baby formula shortage, ret. Lt. Col. Alexander Vindman clowned on her.
“These people are the worst,” Vindman remarked alongside footage of Boebert talking about her opposition to the FDA funding measure. “There’s a formula [crisis] due to regulations blocking free markets. @POTUS & @HouseDemocrats come up with solutions to protect babies & [Lauren Boebert] obstructs the [legislative process] to score political points, blaming government. No wonder there’s no trust in gov.” Boebert ranted in a video to which Vindman replied that the bill that she voted against “gives millions to unelected bureaucrats at the FDA and won’t solve the problem they couldn’t solve before… I will gladly work with my colleagues on real solutions that actually address production and supply chain issues.” One of the areas targeted by the funding was the FDA’s inspection work — and getting that work to a more efficient place would presumably help alleviate supply issues.
These people are the worst. There’s a formula crises due to regulations blocking free markets. @POTUS & @HouseDemocrats come up with solutions to protect babies & @laurenbeobert obstructs the leg to score political points, blaming government. No wonder there’s no trust in gov. https://t.co/mgirNoGdsG
— Alexander S. Vindman (@AVindman) May 20, 2022
Also: yes, Lauren, there are what one might call “bureaucrats” in the federal government — that’s how much of it works. If the foundation for whether or not funding is worthwhile is whether or not the money supports the work of so-called bureaucrats: well, that would eliminate vast swathes of government operations from consideration. What about all the unelected people in high-ranking military positions? What about those serving in the State Department and working on diplomacy? Fighting “bureaucracy” isn’t a broadly useful framework on which to solely rely for figuring out whether a proposal is worthwhile.
Why did 192 Republicans vote against a $28 million emergency fund to address the baby formula shortage?
— Kyle Griffin (@kylegriffin1) May 19, 2022
And while Boebert posts Twitter videos, the Biden administration is working on solutions. Biden invoked the Defense Production Act, which “empowers the government to require suppliers to direct needed resources to infant formula manufacturers before any other customer who may have ordered that good,” an official explained. That official also summarized what’s called Operation Fly Formula: “The Department of Health and Human Services and U.S. Department of Agriculture will use Department of Defense contracted commercial aircraft to pick up overseas infant formula that meets U.S. health and safety standards so it can get to store shelves faster,” they said: “Bypassing traditional cargo routes will speed up the importation and distribution of formula and serve as an immediate support as manufacturers continue to ramp up production.” Meanwhile, Republicans like Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) are despicably ranting about how supposedly terrible it is for the Biden admin to be providing for the nutritional needs of babies from outside the county for whom the government is responsible.
NBC News: The first flights to get formula to the U.S. will start as soon as this weekend.
The first flight is currently expected to go from Zurich, Switzerland to Plainfield, Indiana. That aircraft will transport the equivalent of 1.5 million 8 ounce bottles of three formulas.
— Kyle Griffin (@kylegriffin1) May 20, 2022
