Hoyer calls on Democrats to support omnibus no one has read

House Minority Whip Steny Hoyer (D-Md.) on Friday afternoon called on his colleagues to support the $1 trillion omnibus spending bill, even though no one — or almost no one — has read it.

"I rise in strong support of this bill, and I urge my colleagues to support this piece of legislation," he said. "None of them have read it."

He quickly acknowledged that House Appropriations Committee Chairman Hal Rogers (R-Ky.) read the bill, and that ranking member Norm Dicks (D-Wash.) probably read it as well. But he said that despite his support for the bill, he is not a fan of the process that Republicans used to bring the bill forward so quickly, and at the last minute, for passage.

"Had I as majority leader brought that bill that sits on that floor, 1,207 pages, within the last 24 hours to the floor, I think the response from that side of the aisle would have been harsh, accusatory and not helpful," Hoyer said.

Hoyer said the process should be a "lesson in humility" for all members. The House is expected to approve the bill later this afternoon and send it to the Senate.

Democrats have spoken favorably about the bill in early afternoon debate, and even those who are upset with the process have said they would vote for the bill to avoid a government shutdown.

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