Republican governors are experiencing the benefits of President Joe Biden’s American Rescue Plan. Their budgets are afloat on a tide of money coming from the COVID-19 relief bill, which is funding priorities from rural hospitals to water and sewer systems to affordable housing. That fact has not stopped their whining about the law, though.

South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem railed against it as “a giant handout from Washington, D.C.” in a budget address explaining that she was spending the money on water projects, childcare, and more.  Why didn’t she just refuse the dirty, dirty handout? Because “Giving that money back means that money goes to another state—to California, to New Jersey, maybe Illinois, Michigan, or Minnesota. That money is not going back into South Dakota taxpayers’ pockets.” Funny story: three of the five states on her list send more money to the federal government in taxes than they get in funding. South Dakota does not. And that’s fine! Part of the point of having a federal government is to help states that need it. But it’s important context for her implication that the federal government is siphoning money out of South Dakota to benefit other, bluer states. 

That’s also important context for the whining from Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, who is angry that the American Rescue Plan allocated money in part on state unemployment rates, leading to Florida getting “the short end of the stick compared to these other states.” Go figure, Florida is a habitual recipient of the long end of the federal taxation-and-funding stick compared to states like New York and California. DeSantis’ embrace of fairness doesn’t quite go there, though.

DeSantis’ budget made liberal use of the federal money, though—including for some plans that could lead the Treasury Department to claw back some of the funds spent on projects in violation of the law. He justified keeping the money on the claim that the federal government’s public health measures had gotten in the way of his excellent governance. Florida is currently ninth in COVID-19 deaths per million of population.

Arizona may see some of its American Rescue Plan money clawed back after Gov. Doug Ducey used it to undercut public health measures, including by paying schools not to require masks and giving students money to leave districts that did require masks.

Govs. Greg Abbott of Texas, Mike DeWine of Ohio, and Greg Gianforte of Montana are also on the list of Republicans complaining that the American Rescue Plan exists and/or that it won’t let them spend the money by cutting taxes on rich people, while also spending the money.