Republicans Prepare To Lose On A Government Funding Bill
Source: Huffington Post
POLITICS 04/17/2017 04:06 pm ET
Republicans Prepare To Lose On A Government Funding Bill
The GOP actually needs Democratic help to carry out its agenda this time.
By Matt Fuller
WASHINGTON ― Republicans may hold the House, the Senate and the White House, but when it comes to the upcoming omnibus spending bill, its Democrats who look in control.
There are still a number of tricky issues to settle, and there are plenty of ways a deal could blow up, but when Congress returns next week just a few days before an April 28 government funding deadline, the emerging bill seems likely to please Democrats and anger conservatives.
Its the first real instance where Republicans and President Donald Trump need Democratic votes to enact their agenda ― short of once again blowing up Senate rules ― and that leverage has Democrats blocking many Republican priorities.
In the GOP dream world, Republicans would defund Planned Parenthood, restrict money for so-called sanctuary cities, fund Trumps border wall, potentially blow up Obamacare, and provide significantly more for defense while starving other domestic programs that Democrats prefer. But it seems Republicans will get hardly any of that, save for a defense boost that lawmakers on both sides essentially consider pro forma at this point. Conservatives inside and outside Congress may soon rightfully ask: How is this deal any different than a bill Republicans would get if Hillary Clinton were president and Democrats controlled Congress?
The difficulty for Republicans is that they need eight votes in the Senate to pass an omnibus spending bill, which will fund the government until October. ...
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