House Republicans voted Tuesday to advance a budget framework for a third reconciliation package, giving Speaker Mike Johnson an early victory, and Senate Republicans are warming to using reconciliation to replenish the Pentagon’s depleted weapons stocks.
The budget framework calls for $73 billion in defense and intelligence funding amid the conflict, and the chamber narrowly passed a procedural vote Tuesday afternoon to advance the GOP legislative agenda with a final vote on the package scheduled for later that evening.
Independent Rep. Kevin Kiley of California, who typically votes with Republicans, said he is "very unlikely to support" the GOP budget reconciliation bill.
Speaker Mike Johnson and Office of Management and Budget Director Russ Vought on Tuesday pitched a party-line package centered on the administration’s $95 billion supplemental funding request for the Iran war and farm aid and told members they would get another chance after the midterms to pursue a more sweeping partisan policy bill.
The package being pushed by House GOP leaders would also include $10 billion for grants to states to encourage voter ID and citizenship requirements to participate in elections.
Top appropriators are talking about developing their own version of a stopgap funding bill that would include White House spending anomalies while the House proceeds with consideration of multiple measures, including a stopgap funding bill through the midterms and the start of debate on the annual defense policy bill.
Republican holdouts remain. Rep. Warren Davidson said he planned to oppose the budget resolution, Rep. Tim Burchett said the leaders’ pitch "wasn't that compelling," Rep. Thomas Massie said he will vote no on the rule, and Rep. Chip Roy indicated he would likely support the rule vote and budget resolution though he has described himself as undecided.
House Judiciary Chair Jim Jordan said Vought made a persuasive case, arguing, "When you’ve got a military operation, you’ve got to replenish the bullets. And I don’t think the Democrats are going to vote for that, so I don’t know how else to do it." He added that many fiscal hawks understand the argument that approving supplemental funding through reconciliation — even without offsets — will cost less than negotiating a supplemental with Democrats.
Democrats are preparing resistance. Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries indicated opposition to the continuing resolution in a closed-door leadership meeting, and senior Democrats pushed for language to prohibit funding for immigration enforcement agencies. Democrats are also rallying behind efforts to kill high-profile defense legislation to protest the escalating conflict in the Middle East, which came back into public view over the weekend with the killing of three U.S. troops in the region.
President Trump wrote Monday on Truth Social, "I am asking all House Republicans to VOTE YES this week on the Budget Resolution, which is an important first step towards getting a Budget Bill." Vice President Vance’s private appeal to House Republicans last week did little to change the political math, and Johnson faces a difficult challenge as skepticism extends beyond the House.
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth was scheduled to testify before the Senate Appropriations Committee on Tuesday to defend the administration's supplemental funding request, including tens of billions of dollars to replenish munitions used in Iran.
The House proposal includes about $60 billion to replenish munitions and weapons stocks depleted by U.S. operations against Iran, and some Senate Republicans want a larger package while others insist that at least some of the roughly $95 billion in new spending be offset. Sen. Shelley Moore Capito said, "The tale of the tape is going to be what the House can do. Can the House pass it? I don't think that's a done deal. It's not offset, so I think there's going to be some troubled water there." Sen. Thom Tillis said, "It's pretty clear that [Senate Minority Leader Chuck] Schumer would like to play shutdown politics. So I don't have any problem with using reconciliation for that. But beyond that, it gets pretty narrow, what I'd be willing to support." Senate Majority Leader John Thune said, "Easier said than done." Sen. Lisa Murkowski said, "I am not a big fan of reconciliation whether it's 1.0, 2.0 or 3.0." Sen. Bill Cassidy said, "I'd love a clean CR to get us through the election." Sen. John Hoeven said, "We either need to keep appropriations moving, or it's reconciliation 3.0."