Republicans on a House Appropriations Committee subcommittee voted to remove federal funding for three LGBTQ community centers during a Tuesday hearing.
Eventually passing in a 32-26 partisan vote, tensions between Reps. Tom Cole, R-Okla., and Mark Pocan, D-Wis., boiled when it was first introduced.
The $3.62 million for the sites in Pennsylvania and Massachusetts was part of annual funding to the Departments of Transportation and Housing and Urban Development.
In addition, the amendment prohibits federal funds from being used to fly LGBTQ pride flags outside government buildings.
"This amendment brings this committee to a new low," argued Pocan, an openly gay man. "The fact that you would take away members' earmarks simply because they refer to the LGBTQ+ community is insane."
"If you were to take away earmarks because they went to the NAACP or the Urban League, you would rightfully so be called racist bigots," he continued. "But when you do it to the LGBT community, it's another frickin' day in Congress."
The committee proceeding was temporarily paused after Rep. Rosa DeLauro, D-Conn., compared working with some Republicans to "negotiating with terrorists."
Republicans went into several other recesses following Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz, D-Fla., calling Republicans "bigoted" and claiming that the party "doesn't like gay people."
Rep. Mike Quigley, D-Ill., also introduced an amendment to add the three projects back into the bill. However, it was rejected in a 27-30 vote.
Meanwhile, Rep. Andrew Clyde, R-Ga., contended that it would be "inappropriate" to fund the three projects.
"That's a woke priority, and we're not going to spend the government's [money]" to fund the projects, Clyde insisted.
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