Press Releases
"Puntagon" Spending Package:
Summary and Key Points
"The Republican majority continues to lurch from crisis to crisis of their own making. This partisan and irresponsible package fails to advance the safety and prosperity of American families and communities and leaves no path to accomplish urgent and bipartisan priorities by the end of the year."
Rep. Nita Lowey (D-NY)
Ranking Democrat, House Appropriations Committee
Background
"In recent months, hurricanes battered Texas, Florida, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands and destroyed homes, businesses, infrastructure, and communities, as did raging wildfires in California.
"I have heard directly from representatives of these states and territories, who have conveyed the massive scale of the devastation and the need for robust disaster assistance to help communities recover and rebuild. This request does not come close to what local officials say is needed.
Mr. Speaker, since Hurricane Harvey wrought historic flooding in Texas, 12 major disasters have been declared.
From a hurricane that damaged large swaths of Florida, storms that annihilated Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands, and wildfires burning in the West, Americans deserve certainty the Federal Government will stand by them in their time of need.
This is particularly important after the President threatened to abandon Puerto Rico in his latest Twitter rant this morning. Congress cannot turn its back on recovery, no matter how reckless the President's outburst may be, as Americans are suffering and simply trying to survive.
"Today's House passage of inadequate and partisan Appropriations bills gets us no closer to enacting full-year funding that will support middle-class families, invest in critical priorities, and keep the American people secure at home and abroad.
"These bills cannot be enacted into law because they cannot gain Democratic votes. And if they were enacted, they would be subject to an across-the-board sequester of $72 billion from all defense accounts.
"It was heartening that Democratic Congressional leadership reached a deal with President Trump for a temporary Continuing Resolution to avoid a government shutdown at the end of September. However, without an agreement to raise Budget Control Act spending caps, we will just face another crisis in December.
I rise in support of providing critical emergency relief to respond to the catastrophic damages wreaked by Hurricane Harvey, and the expectation of damages from Hurricane Irma. My thoughts and prayers remain with all those whose families, lives, homes, and businesses have been upended by these disasters. This Congress and the American people are with you in your time of need.
I am pleased this package provides a temporary suspension of the federal debt limit to prevent a catastrophic debt default. Congress and the Administration must never allow the threat of default to raise questions about the faith and credit of the United States of America.
Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong opposition to this bill, which would turn back the clock on American excellence, following President Trump's lead on divesting from education, health, foreign assistance, science, and infrastructure.
The process for this bill has been outrageous, and this debate is an utter waste of time. Just hours ago, Congressional leadership and the President agreed to pass a package including Hurricane Harvey assistance as well as a debt limit extension and a continuing resolution to keep government running until December 15th. We should be working to pass that measure now so that we can work toward a bipartisan budget agreement instead of wasting days on a bill that undercuts economic growth and priorities on which families rely and is so hyper-partisan it will never earn the Democratic support needed to be enacted.
"When Hurricane Sandy crippled New York and New Jersey in 2012, I will never forget Americans coming together to help their neighbors, and many of my colleagues who offered prayer, kind words, and support for federal assistance.
"When disasters strike, we must put political disagreements aside and come together as Americans to recover and rebuild. Despite the refusal of Texas' Senators and many representatives to stand by the people of New York and New Jersey, I stand ready and willing to help our fellow Americans and their communities in need of federal assistance."
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CLICK HERE FOR A FULL SUMMARY OF THE 8-BILL APPROPRIATIONS PACKAGE
The House is scheduled to consider an Appropriations package next week made up of the eight spending bills that were not part of the July ‘security minibus.'
Here are 8 important things to know:
Typically, the Legislative Branch, Military Construction and Veteran's Affairs, Energy and Water, and Defense bills would be debated and amended by the full house individually.
Regrettably, we are debating this $790 billion so-called security minibus in only two hours for some reason other than necessity. Substantive amendments, chosen at the discretion of the Chairman of the Rules Committee, will be debated for 10 minutes. We also expect $1.6 billion in Border Wall funding to be added through a rules gimmick meant to prevent an up or down vote on the Wall. The undemocratic maneuver by the Rules Committee to unilaterally remove Congresswoman Barbara Lee's amendment to debate a new AUMF, which received bipartisan support in Committee, is simply outrageous.
All the promises of Republican leadership of returning to regular order have been broken.