House Republicans threaten a government shutdown by opposing stopgap measures unless leadership meets their demands.
The feud over spending cuts between hardline and centrist Republicans in the United States House of Representatives worsens the situation. House Freedom Caucus members support a $1.47 trillion cut to fiscal 2022.
Potential US Government Shutdown
This number is $120 billion less than United States President Joe Biden and Republican House Speaker Kevin McCarthy agreed on in their debt ceiling compromise reached in May. The group issued the threat on Monday.
The situation comes as Republican lawmakers also want higher spending on defense, veterans benefits, and border security. Analysts argue that the hardline target would result in up to 25% cuts in areas such as agriculture, infrastructure, science, commerce, water and energy, and healthcare.
In a Monday research note, analysts from Goldman Sachs said that a government shutdown is more likely to occur. Centrist GOP lawmakers, calling themselves "governing" Republicans, argue that their hardline colleagues are ignoring some issues, as per Reuters.
This includes ignoring that Democrats have rejected their priorities as the latter continues to control the Senate and White House. They argued that spending would increase near the level that was agreed upon by McCarthy and Biden anyway.
They argue that the result of the situation would be a major problem for centrist Republicans who come from swing states that Biden won in the 2020 election, with constituents in the firing line of hardline spending targets.
In a statement, Nebraska centrist Republican Rep. Don Bacon said that the reductions are so deep that he said, "They want to make everything a root canal." On the other hand, hardline Republicans view the 2024 fiscal year as a test of the GOP's resolve to reduce the government's debt and move forward to reform social programs, such as Medicare and Social Security.
Republican Lawmakers' Demands
Earlier this month, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and Minority Leader Mitch McConnell said publicly that a temporary fix was needed to prevent a government shutdown at the end of September. According to Politico, this situation comes as Congress takes more time to release new spending bills.
In a statement, the Freedom Caucus demanded that Congress consider a short-term extension of government funding through a Continuing Resolution. It argued that Democrats have a bloated COVID-era spending and claims that other measures have failed to force the Biden administration to follow the law and fulfill the government's basic responsibilities.
They are looking to increase funding for border enforcement and cuts to the Department of Justice and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). The House Freedom Caucus also demanded an end to "woke" policies at the Department of Defense.
The development comes as Congress is unlikely to complete its work on appropriations bills before the deadline of Sept. 30. This has prompted the leadership to call for a continuing resolution to have more time to address the issue, said Axios.
