WASHINGTON—Senate Republicans are looking to pass a bill to rescind $9 billion in allocated federal funding by a July 18 deadline.
The Senate began on July 16 a process called a vote-a-rama, where an unlimited number of amendments can be offered.
“The rescissions package has a big problem—nobody really knows what program reductions are in it. That isn’t because we haven’t had time to review the bill. Instead, the problem is that OMB has never provided the details that would normally be part of this process,” she said, referring to the Office of Management and Budget.
“I recognize the need to reduce excessive spending and I have supported rescissions in our appropriations bills many times, including the 70 rescissions that were included in the year-long funding bill that we are currently operating under. But to carry out our Constitutional responsibility, we should know exactly what programs are affected and the consequences of the rescissions.”
Murkowski said on the Senate floor ahead of the votes that she does not like how the Senate has been operating lately.
“I don’t want us to go from one reconciliation bill to a rescissions package to another rescissions package, to a reconciliation package, to a continuing resolution. We’re lawmakers. We should be legislating,” she said.
Murkowski also said the Trump administration has not provided a “very transparent explanation about the programs and the priorities that are going to be cut as a result of the measure.”
The rescissions bill originally would have rescinded $9.4 billion in funds. However, $400 million was taken out, as a provision to cut funding for a program to combat HIV and AIDS abroad, called PEPFAR, was removed from the bill. With the change to the bill, which the House passed last month, the bill would have to be passed again by the House were the Senate to pass it before it goes to President Donald Trump’s desk for his signature.
House Republicans expressed displeasure over the change.
“I’m troubled by the fact that we are not willing to be very aggressive when it comes to rescissions,” Rep. Harriet Hageman (R-Wyo.) told The Epoch Times.
Rep. Glenn Grothman (R-Wis.) told The Epoch Times: “We’re aware that under normal circumstances, the Republicans in the Senate are not as fiscally responsible as the Republicans in the House. So this is disappointing, but not surprising, news.”
“I thought that that was that was disappointing,” Rep. Eric Burlison (R-Mo.) told The Epoch Times. “I hope that that’s all that’s removed, that there’s not more, but that’s not a good sign.”
The bill would claw back funding for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, which funds NPR and PBS, both of which have come under fire by conservatives who accuse the outlets of liberal bias.
The measure also consists of cutting $8.3 billion in initiatives by the now-defunct U.S. Agency for International Development, or USAID, whose functions are now under the State Department.
Were the bill to not be signed by Trump on July 18, the funding would have to be spent, and the Corporation for Public Broadcasting would be funded for another two years.
Trump has said he will not support any Republican who votes against the rescissions bill.
MSDNC is a moniker given to the network MSNBC by critics.
“Any Republican that votes to allow this monstrosity to continue broadcasting will not have my support or endorsement,” the president said.
