President Donald Trump is serious about reducing the growth in government spending. In the wake of his triumphal address to a joint session of Congress last week, Trump is deploying his political capital to push for a continuing resolution that keeps spending levels about where they are right now while his administration works to figure out what should be spent and what waste, fraud, and abuse can be cut. Senate Democrats should join his effort.
Start with a simple proposition: Cutting waste, fraud, and abuse out of the trillions of dollars our government spends every year is good for America and for Americans.
Under the spending bill Trump wants the Congress to send him, spending levels for the last six and a half months of the fiscal year would be about the same as the spending levels were for the first five and a half months of the year. These are the same spending levels most Democrats voted for twice in the last six months -- first in September in the House and the Senate, then again in December in the House and the Senate.
The spending bill passed the House Tuesday afternoon by a vote of 217-213, with one Republican voting “no” and one Democrat voting “yes.” With a shutdown clock ticking – the current funding bill expires at midnight on Friday, just days away – the measure will need 60 votes to end debate and move to a vote on final passage in the Senate. But there are only 53 Republicans in the Senate, and one has declared his opposition to the bill, so at least eight Democrats will have to vote to end debate to allow the bill to come to the floor.
If Democrats provide the votes necessary to move the legislation, the government will remain open, fully funded for the rest of the fiscal year.
On the other hand, if Democrats refuse to provide the votes necessary for the bill to pass, the government will shut down, and there will be no doubt about who is responsible. The “Resistance” will be happy, but will the rest of America?
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After all, this is a spending bill with no earmarks. This is a spending bill that ensures that, factoring in inflation, spending over the course of fiscal 2025 will actually be lower than spending for fiscal 2024. You read that right – it’s an actual spending freeze, a feat that will bring a smile to the face of any fiscal hawk.
Most importantly, unlike the vast majority of continuing resolutions, this particular continuing resolution is not merely the precursor for a 3,000-page “omnibus” spending package, the kind that Tea Party Patriots Action and other fiscally conservative grassroots organization regularly oppose. It is a “full year” continuing resolution, meaning that it will, with its two predecessors, provide a full year’s funding for the government.
In other words, this spending bill demonstrates the determination of President Trump and the congressional Republicans who wrote it to actually reduce the growth of government spending. They are serious.
With other GOP presidents, daring to shut down the government temporarily might be a chance congressional Democrats would be willing to take in the high-stakes game of chicken that is a typical spending negotiation. But Donald Trump is unlike other presidents. He is unpredictable, to say the least, and he has already demonstrated that when it comes to spending negotiations, his spine is made of steel.
Senate Democrats – and the country – would be far better off if Senate Democrats were to vote to bring the spending bill to the floor, and then voted for it on final passage. That would show the country that they’re willing to work with President Trump and congressional Republicans to identify savings in the federal budget, to begin to get Washington’s reckless spending under control.
Trump has worked closely with congressional GOP leaders to fashion a full-year continuing resolution that saves money year-over-year even as it actually increases spending on defense, border security, and veterans’ health, while saving money on domestic discretionary spending programs and denying even GOP members their desired earmarks. Trump has helped Speaker Mike Johnson maneuver the bill to passage in the House, despite the tight margin there.
Now the ball is in the hands of Senate Democrats. They can join Trump and Senate Republicans in keeping the government open and working to identify places to reduce the growth of government spending, or they can vote to shut down the government. The choice is theirs. America is watching.
Jenny Beth Martin is Honorary Chairman of Tea Party Patriots Action.
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