Amid major policy battles and unresolvedissues, Republicans will need to handle back-to-back legislative deadlines while avoiding a government shutdown in the first year of unified government, The Hill reports.
Their task is being further complicated by the war of words between President Donald Trump and a growing number of GOP lawmakers.
In September, lawmakers will need to pass legislation to fund the government to avoid a shutdown on October 1.
They’re expected to try to approve a short-term funding bill, known as a continuing resolution, that would set the stage for another battle at the end of the year.
However, the big problem is Trump’s demand that a measure includes money for his border wall. He already threatened that he’s willing to shut down the government to get it, but a House GOP aide said big fights could be kicked to December.
Raising the debt ceiling is another concern for lawmakers, as treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin has given Congress a deadline until September 29 to do so, setting up possible back-to-back votes on unpopular fiscal issues.
Republicans are projecting confidence on the debt bill, despite demands from conservatives that it include spending cuts.
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said at an event in Kentucky that there is “zero chance” Congress won’t raise the debt ceiling, while House Speaker Paul Ryan added there were plenty of options.
The GOP will need Democratic votes, and the minority will not agree to conservative demands for spending cuts to be part of the package.
A new issue that Congress must deal with is an aid package for Houston and other communities devastated by Hurricane Harvey. It’s not clear what the bill will be, but Congress is likely to be asked for tens of billions.
There has already been talk about merging the disaster aid with legislation to keep the government open or to raise the debt ceiling. Such a merger makes a lot of sense for GOP leaders, as it would likely get more Republicans to vote for the larger package.
Trump has said he views disaster aid as a separate issue, however, and Meadows also says the emergency bill should be considered on its own.
On the healthcare issue, Senators Lamar Alexander and Patty Murray are trying to craft a bill to stabilize the insurance markets and provide funding for ObamaCare’s cost-sharing reduction payments.
Their push has drawn skepticism from top Republicans, who oppose what they view as a bailout of insurance companies without any reforms. McConnell acknowledged after Republicans failed to pass a “skinny” ObamaCare repeal bill that the pathway forward is “murky”.
Senate Republicans still have the House-passed ObamaCare repeal bill on the calendar.The move could allow them to try to bring back the legislation if they can come up with a deal that gets 50 GOP votes.
Concerning the tax reforms, GOP lawmakers are hoping to make good on the pledge to reform the tax code this year, The Hill adds.
Republicans are planning to go it alone on tax reform, using the same reconciliation rules as health care to prevent Senate Democrats from filibustering their legislation.
Trump used in a speech in Missouri to pressure lawmakers, and red-state Democrats up for reelection, to make good on their promises to simplify the tax code, saying he doesn’t “want to be disappointed by Congress.”
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