GOP roadblocks start to emerge on big Trump agenda bill
Add Axios as your preferred source to
see more of our stories on Google.
Trump speaks at a press conference at Mar-a-Lago in Palm Beach, Fla., on Tuesday. Photo: Scott Olson/Getty Images
House Republicans are already laying down potential dealbreakers for the massive fiscal legislation President-elect Trump and House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) are planning.
Why it matters: The chamber is set to have a roughly two-vote majority when the package is voted on, meaning just a handful of GOP defections could sink the entire initiative.
- Republican factions — both in the House and Senate — are already at each others' throats on whether the package should consist of one bill or two, with Trump wavering on the topic.
State of play: Republican leadership could run into an issue with its fiscally conservative wing if it tries to advance one sprawling bill that includes a measure to raise the debt ceiling.
- "I heard that there are three people that will not vote for a debt ceiling lift, which already kills the bill," said Rep. Rich McCormick (R-Ga.).
- Two House Republicans — Reps. Andy Biggs of Arizona and Tim Burchett of Tennessee — have never voted to increase the debt ceiling.
Zoom in: The overall price tag of the measure could also create a dilemma for deficit hawks.
- The bill is set to include an extension of Trump's 2017 tax cuts that could cost as much as $5 trillion over 10 years, in addition to funding for border security and an immigration crackdown.
- It will also likely include spending cuts, but the kind of discretionary cuts that Republicans have been floating may amount to peanuts compared to the debt and deficit implications of the package.
What they're saying: "I'm not going to say I'm going to create a 'red line' per se, but in general I came up here to cut spending. That's my whole personal goal, to right-size government," said Rep. Eric Burlison (R-Mo.).
- Burlison said Republicans have historically been "bad at" pairing meaningful spending reductions with their tax cuts.
- "Everybody has something that somebody's whispering in their ear that they need for [their district], so spending is always a hang-up for Congress and we have never, ever been able to bring that in," said McCormick.
Zoom out: It's not just the GOP's right flank that leadership has to worry about.
- Rep. Mike Lawler (R-N.Y.) told reporters Tuesday he's "been very clear from the start that I will not support a tax bill that does not lift the cap" on the state and local tax deduction.
- That's a provision several blue-state Republicans have pushed for — even though it is unpopular with many Republican lawmakers.
- Lifting the SALT cap would likely also add hundreds of billions to the deficit, which could further fuel the concerns of fiscal conservatives.
What's next: Trump is set to meet with several factions of House Republican lawmakers to try to bridge the divide among them.
- That includes those Republicans pushing to increase the SALT cap, as well as GOP committee leaders and members of the right-wing House Freedom Caucus.
