This Week in Congress Update

The Congressional leadership is really going to attach the debt ceiling increase to the Hurricane Harvey relief bill. The plan is to pass a clean relief bill tomorrow in the House and then send it to the Senate where they will attach a debt ceiling increase—and possibly a continuing resolution funding the government.

Fortunately, Senator Rand Paul and others are opposing this scheme. Campaign for Liberty is working to mobilize opposition to this or any other attempt to raise the debt ceiling. Please help our efforts by signing our No Debt Ceiling Hike Petition today.

Today the House is going to work on the omnibus appropriations bill. The bill is comprised of eight appropriations bills and the spending breaks down as follows:

Agriculture– $20 billion, $876 million less than Fiscal Year 2017, but $4.6 billion more than President Trump’s request.

Commerce, Justice, Science– $53.848 billion, $2.6 billion less than Fiscal Year 2017, but $4.8 billion more than Trump Administration request.

Financial Services– $29.23 billion, $1.3 billion less than Fiscal Year 2017, and $2.5 billion less than Trump Administration’s request.

Homeland Security– $42.768 billion, $1.8 billion more than Fiscal Year 2017, and $327 million more than Trump Administration request.

Interior– $31.46 billion, $824 million less than Fiscal Year 2017, but $19.5 billion more than Trump Administration request.

Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education– $157.03 billion, $5 billion less than Fiscal Year 2017, but $19.5 billion more than Trump Administration request.

State and Foreign Operations– $35.35 billion, $10 billion less than Fiscal Year 2017, but $6.8 billion more than Trump Administration request, and does not count the $12 billion given to the Overseas Contingency Operations (OCO) slush fund.

Transportation, HUD– $56.51 billion, $2.1 billion less than Fiscal Year 2017, but $8.6 billion more than Trump”s request.

As you can see, the bill makes some small cuts in spending but not the  cuts needed. And when this bill is merged with the big spending bill the House passed in July any savings will be wiped out.

More importantly, the bill does nothing to limit the size and scope of government.