'Above my pay grade': GOP faces obstacles to passing bill that would skirt Dem votes

01 December 2024

Ahead of his victory over Vice President Kamala Harris last month, Donald Trump made promises like vowing to cut taxes, carrying out the largest mass deportation operation in history, and ending President Joe Biden administration policies.

Republicans are doing their best to assist the president-elect with these agenda items, by plotting to put forth legislation through a "reconciliation" proceeding, that would "allow them to pass policies involving taxes and spending without the need for any Democratic votes," according to an NBC News Sunday, December 1 report.

"The reconciliation process bypasses the Senate's 60-vote threshold for most bills," NBC reports, "requiring just a majority vote to pass a tax- and spending package once per fiscal year."

Per the report, the Republican lawmakers are aiming to ramp "up the process with a budget setting the parameters for the bill in early January, even before Trump takes office, two sources with knowledge of the push said."

Senator Thom Tillis (R-NC) told the news outlet, "It’ll be super challenging. And the reason for that is you have razors at margins, and we’re obviously not going to get any Democrat votes. The key is going to be addressing all these coalitions that are likely going to threaten an insufficient number of votes unless they get their priorities. ... It’s infinitely more complex to get a reconciliation outcome in this cycle out of the House than the Senate."

Judiciary Committee Chair Jim Jordan (R-OH), according to NBC, is focused on passing "'the conservative immigration package known as HR2 'right away' in the new Congress and push through some of those provisions in reconciliation."

But with "party divisions," the GOP lawmakers face "one big question," NBC notes. "How much would the GOP pay for, and how much would it add to the rising deficit?"

Tillis told NBC, "There’s a lot of things we can claw back. The Democrats shouldn’t be surprised that the American Rescue Plan and the Inflation Reduction Act should be ripe for that."

The Finance Committee member emphasized his concern "that a small group of House Republicans may torpedo the package by demanding that it not add to the deficit," considering "Democrats have 214 votes, and they lead in the one race that remains to be called, in California's 13th District."

The North Carolina lawmaker added, "This is where President Trump is going to have to be a very, very important part of the process. I’ve heard more than three people [in the House] say that they won’t vote for a tax package that’s not fully offset. If so, we’re done. So how do you fix that? That’s above my pay grade, and it’s out of my chamber.”

NBC News' full report is available at this link.

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