House conservatives demand spending cuts to rein in ‘Biden’s radical woke’ government.

House GOP Hardliners Demand Spending Cuts or Risk Government Shutdown

A group of 21 Republicans, led by Reps. Scott Perry (R-PA) and Chip Roy (R-TX), are demanding that House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) commit to cutting spending. They warn that failure to do so may result in a government shutdown this fall.

Seeking Concessions

These Republicans wrote a letter to McCarthy, expressing their concerns following a bipartisan deal to avoid a default on the U.S. debt. They argue that the deal did not do enough to rein in spending below the “bloated” fiscal 2023 level.

“We are thankful for your recent efforts – since that debt ceiling agreement – to restore cross-conference meetings to achieve consensus on appropriations,” the letter says.

“As we already have done, we will work in good faith to offer ideas on the best ways to reduce spending, but only if combined with the leadership necessary to set the target for the whole team,” the letter adds. “For unity to exist, we must have a clear mission to actually cut the total discretionary federal bureaucracy to pre-pandemic levels and end the empowerment of President Biden’s radical woke and weaponized government.”

Ultimatum for Spending Measures

The core of their ultimatum is a demand that all appropriations measures to fund the federal government “be achieved without the use of reallocated rescissions to increase discretionary spending above” the fiscal 2022 top-line level of $1.471 trillion.

They support the use of rescissions to reduce spending but oppose using them to shift funding to bureaucrats implementing the Biden agenda. They argue that this would continue Democrats’ reckless inflationary spending.

House Appropriations Chairwoman Kay Granger (R-TX) has already committed to using the mark-up process on appropriations bills to limit spending to the fiscal 2022 top-line level.

Granger also mentioned clawing back $115 billion “in unnecessary, partisan programs” to refocus government spending in line with Republican priorities.

The Challenge Ahead

With a slim majority in the House, Republicans can only afford to lose a few GOP votes without support from the Democrats. They must navigate the appropriations process, a Democrat-led Senate, and President Joe Biden to pass legislation and avoid a government shutdown before the September 30 deadline.

A Firm Stance

In addition to their other requests, the 21 conservatives drew a spending line they refuse to cross. They plan to vote against any appropriations bills designed to achieve the approximately $1.586 trillion top-line spending level agreed to with President Biden in the debt ceiling deal.

“Absent adhering to the $1.471 trillion spending level – and/or achieving significant policy victories such as forcing President Biden to sign H.R. 2 and take the steps necessary to secure the border – we see an impossible path to reach 218 Republican votes on appropriations or other measures,” the letter concludes.

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