Senate Backroom Spending Deal Will Only Get Worse
If Congressional Republicans lose the election, it won’t be because they were too conservative. In fact, quite the contrary. Since Republicans took control of the Senate in 2015, there have been embarrassingly few conservative victories.
Instead, this Republican Congress is better known for making deals with President Obama than for standing with conservatives. After all, in the first year Republicans controlled Congress since 2006, they helped add $1.2 trillion in new deficit spending. That’s not so conservative.
Yet, the 114th Congress is quickly coming to a close. But before Republicans can return to the campaign trail, they must pass a short-term spending bill, known as a Continuing Resolution (CR), before government funding runs dry on October 1. However, negotiations between Senate Republican leadership and Democrats are like perpetual moments of deja vu.
As in the past, Republicans seem resigned to surrender to Democrats in backroom deals; and Democrats appear to be comfortable with their ability to outwit Republicans.
We already know that Republicans have surrendered to Obama’s demands for a 10-week CR, which will require Congress to legislate during the lame-duck session. And the dangers of a lame duck, the time between the election and a new Congress, should be obvious by now.
A primary sticking point has been funding to fight the Zika virus. Earlier this summer, disagreements over how the funding could be utilized led to an impasse. In particular, Democrats wanted emergency Zika funding to be used for Planned Parenthood.
This impasse has now been ironed out, or at least the Democrats did the ironing. It didn’t take much for Republicans to surrender to Democrat demands to use part of the Zika funds for Planned Parenthood.
You may think that the Republican surrender on Planned Parenthood illustrates just how feckless Republicans truly are, but it gets worse.
If you didn’t already know, the Zika virus is spread by mosquitos. Republicans, sensibly, wanted funding to also include a temporary moratorium on the permits generally required for mosquito pesticides. The moratorium would have allowed farmers and others to spray specific pesticides near bodies of water. Instead, Democrats made clear they prioritize the environment over people’s health; Republicans caved to those demands too.
Really, you can’t make this up. The United States Congress wants to fight bugs, but won’t make it easy to get the permits that would allow homeowners, farmers, towns and cities to actually do it.
Then there’s the discussion involving more “emergency funding.” Republicans want additional money to fund Louisiana’s flood disaster, while Democrats are requesting additional federal funds for the Flint City water crisis.
This issue shouldn’t even be debated in a short term funding bill. The Disaster Relief Fund currently has $12 billion available, today, to address immediate needs and disaster mitigation. Instead of using money normally dedicated to long-term disaster needs, like housing and reconstruction, Congress should use the billions of dollars they already have set aside.
As conservatives, these constant charades over spending are what we have all come to expect. So, too, are the backroom deals negotiated by Republican leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky. (F, 42%) and Democrats. Far too often, these terrible deals are pieced together without the input of other Republican senators, and voted on merely hours later.
Republicans are negotiating these terrible deals just weeks before they have to stand for reelection and ask voters to send them back to Washington. If they’re already willing to sell out this close to the election, just imagine what they’ll feel free to do in the lame duck — once they’ve already been reelected.
Buckle your seat belts, guys. Congressional Republicans are about to take us all for a very bumpy ride. (For more from the author of “Senate Backroom Spending Deal Will Only Get Worse” please click HERE)
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