ClineWatch: A rare bit of praise for Ben Cline, who showed rare restraint

As the author of Cline Watch, I’ve been accused of being excessively negative about Congressman Ben Cline.

Although I strive to be as factual as I can, I’ll admit to a fundamentally different political and ideological viewpoint from Cline’s.

However I do want to single him out for some rare approval.

The Roanoke Times reports:

Internet expansion continues to interconnect Botetourt County like never before, officials said Tuesday.

A combination of $5 million and counting in state grant money, and millions more in federal coronavirus relief funds, have enabled the county, and other localities in the region, to broaden availability of broadband internet access to thousands more homes.

Local, state, federal and business officials gathered at the Botetourt Center at Greenfield in Daleville on Tuesday to discuss those and future internet expansion efforts. U.S. Sen. Mark Warner, D-Va., said broadband is essential to helping communities succeed.

Democratic Sen. Mark Warner was there for the occasion.

Congressman Cline was absent. That’s why I want to praise him.

Like every other Republican in Congress, Cline voted NO in 2021 on the American Rescue Plan Act, which has helped fund broadband expansion in Botetourt County (part of Cline’s district) and elsewhere in Virginia and the rest of the country. (Senators Warner and Kaine and all of Virginia’s Democratic House members voted YES.)

So unlike some of his Republican colleagues, Cline is not brazenly taking credit for the positive results of a federal program he opposed. At least not yet.

Well done, Congressman!

Gene Zitver is the author of ClineWatch.