With 29 days until the government runs out of spending authority, House Republicans no longer seem bound by the Fiscal Responsibility Act, the 2023 spending deal between then-President Joe Biden and former Speaker Kevin McCarthy.
House Appropriations Committee Chair Tom Cole (R-Okla.) said one of the challenges of current government-funding negotiations is that the FRA must be re-negotiated, something Democrats have opposed so far.
That 2023 deal doesn’t exist anymore, Cole argued, meaning a spending sequester in April may not go into effect if Congress enacts a CR to avoid a March 14 government shutdown.
Essentially, appropriators don’t necessarily need to abide by the FRA because “the same political structure that existed” under the deal isn’t around, the Oklahoma Republican told reporters Wednesday night.
“When the power structure changes, the nature of the deal will change,” Cole said. “You have to renegotiate it and people don’t like to renegotiate things.”
Also: Every congressional Democrat — plus Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick (R-Pa.) — has signed onto this Labor Caucus-led letter that slams the Trump administration for firing former National Labor Relations Board Member Gwynne Wilcox.
The widespread Democratic effort shows how the party is aiming to slam Republicans for what it sees as anti-labor practices that will hurt American workers.
