A number of House Republicans want President Trump to veto a $1.4 trillion omnibus spending bill being worked out in Congress, deriding it as an example of Washington “swamp politics.”
In a letter signed by 14 of the chamber’s Republicans, including Representatives Andy Biggs of Arizona and Chip Roy of Texas, the lawmakers described the measure as a “massive take-it-or-leave-it bill, negotiated behind closed doors, that expands government, spends at record levels well above 2011 base cap levels, and funds unnecessary or even harmful federal programs.”
Negotiations are set to continue Thursday as lawmakers attempt to reach an agreement on the massive spending bill and prevent a government shutdown while they simultaneously try to finalize a separate coronavirus stimulus bill.
“I’m hopeful by tonight … we will have an agreement on the omnibus,” said House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-MD) on Wednesday, although the day ended without a deal.
Sources told Fox News that another interim spending bill may be needed to avoid a shutdown after the Friday deadline, citing unresolved policy issues.
There is reportedly a plan to put the $900 billion coronavirus aid package on top of the $1.4 omnibus to create a bill with an approximately $2.3 trillion price tag. Such legislation, however, would be huge and require time on the part of legislators in order to become familiar with the bill.
The Republican signatories of the letter worry the omnibus bill will increase the national debt. They blame House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), arguing that the proposal “fully funds an agenda rejected by the American people” and stressed the fact that Democrats’ House majority significantly shrunk thanks to November’s election.
They also pointed to the president’s promise in 2018 that he “would never sign another bill like this again” when he signed that year’s omnibus spending bill.
“This bill promises to be even larger, exemplifying everything that is wrong with the swamp politics of Washington, D.C.,” the lawmakers said.
The Republicans take issue both with the legislation’s content and cost, arguing the federal government should work to save money since it’s simultaneously passing COVID-19 stimulus.
They wrote to President Trump:
Supporting this is a vote to fund an education system that is failing to educate our children while teaching them that America is evil, it is a vote to fund grants to states that run a badly broken election system; it is a vote to fund a healthcare system that empowers insurance companies at the expense of hard-working Americans; it is a vote to underfund border security and empower cartels; it is a vote to continue war without so much as a debate much less a vote on a new AUMF for our men and women in uniform; it is a vote to fund Planned Parenthood; and, among many other things, it is a vote to send money to state and local agencies that are perpetuating the shutdowns that are destroying our way of life.
Our country will be better off if you veto this omnibus appropriations bill for fiscal year 2021.
Is the president willing to go to war over the uniparty while he’s also in a bitter fight to win a second term despite voter fraud being perpetuated by the failure of many of the nation’s institutions — from the courts to state legislators — to perform their constitutional duties?
The establishment certainly wants the omnibus and COVID-19 relief bills passed. Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell said fiscal conservatism should be thrown to the wind in light of the pandemic.
“The case for fiscal policy right now is very, very strong and I think that’s widely understood,” Powell said following a Federal Reserve meeting, adding that “the time to focus on [budgetary concerns] is when the economy is strong, unemployment is low and taxes are pouring in and there’s room to get on a sustainable path because the economy is doing well.”
Although the stock market remains at all-time highs, unemployment is expected to grow as state and local governments order new business closures to prevent the spread of coronavirus as the mainstream media stokes fears with fear-mongering stories such as the recent one about a White House security director who allegedly lost his leg due to COVID-19.
President Trump has played ball with his own party for years now, but they have repeatedly refused to return the favor. When it comes to this spending monstrosity, fiscal conservatives hope, the president should forget the establishment and stand by his principles.
