President Joe Biden has threatened to veto the first of the House Republicans’ government funding proposals, which they aim to push this week through the entire house.
Speaker Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., is preparing a confrontation with Democrats over must-pass funding bills ahead of a September 30 deadline, sparking fears of a government shutdown in response to a revolt from House conservatives that want to spend not much of a recent budget deal and engage with culture war issues.
The leader of the far-right Freedom Caucus, Rep. Bob Good of Virginia, declared, “We should not fear a government shutdown.” The majority of our actions up here are negative regardless.
The House may take up controversial amendments to financing legislation for veterans and agriculture on Tuesday in the Rules Committee that include abortion, transgender rights, marijuana, diversity training, migration, and critical race theory.
The White House blasted House Republicans for breaking the most recent budget agreement and for “wasting time with partisan bills” and declared that Biden would veto the both Republican-led bills if they were brought before him.
The draft legislation, according to the White House budget office, “includes numerous new, partisan policy provisions with devastating consequences, including harming access to reproductive healthcare, endangering the health and safety of [LGBTQ] Americans, undermining marriage equality, impeding crucial climate change initiatives, equity, and inclusion and preventing the Administration from promoting diversity. “
The generally bipartisan House military and veterans funding bill is about to become a fierce conflict as it makes its way to the Rules Committee on Tuesday. Nearly 100 amendments have been filed, which Republican leaders will have to sort through.
Republicans have proposed modifications to strengthen the anti-abortion wording, while Democrats have filed their own amendments to strike the bill’s abortion restrictions. One by Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., would forbid transfers of monies to another federal agency for services connected to abortion, and one by Rep. Andy Ogles, R-Tenn., would eliminate loopholes permitting financing for abortion.
In addition, Greene has suggested changes that would reduce NATO funds and give the Pentagon authority to guard the country’s southern and northern borders. Rep. Matt Rosendale’s (R-Montana) further proposal would ban the use of any monies to carry out prospective Covid-19 mask regulations. Additionally, Rep. Robert Garcia, a Democrat from California, wants to ban marijuana testing for job candidates in places where it is permitted.
The agriculture, rural development, and FDA funding measure will be the subject of a similar discussion in the Rules Committee on Wednesday, with the same set of culture war themes in play.
McCarthy has committed to pass spending measures one at a time rather than bundling them together as Congress has done in recent years.
Conservative House Republicans are unhappy with the Senate’s bipartisan approach and avoidance of controversial clauses as it pushes appropriations legislation.
The House and Senate will have a month-long August recess after this week, which will make for a hectic September.
Rep. Andy Ogles, R-Tenn., declared that “the trajectory we’re on right now is unsustainable.” “And we must make cuts as a courtesy to the American people. If not, this will end in disaster like the Titanic.”