Russell Vought Says Another Rescissions Package Is Coming 'Soon'

[Celerity]

The OMB director shrugged off Democrats’ argument that rescissions were hurting bipartisan work on appropriations.

https://www.notus.org/trump-white-house/russell-vought-another-rescissions-package-coming-soon



As Republicans push to finish the first rescission bill in decades, Office of Management and Budget Director Russell Vought said he was not prepared to give Democratic senators assurances that future appropriations they approve won’t be clawed back later using rescission. “No, I’m not,” he said Thursday at an event with reporters hosted by the Christian Science Monitor in response to a question from NOTUS.

“It’s not going to keep me up at night, and I think will lead to better results by having the appropriations process be a little bit partisan, and I don’t think it’s necessarily leading to a shutdown.” His comments come as the House prepares to vote on a rescission bill that cuts $9 billion in previously approved funds for foreign aid and the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, and weeks ahead of a government funding deadline.

The rescissions package is a key part of the Trump administration’s efforts to cut government spending that is deemed out of line with the administration ideologically — and a major departure from the way the government is typically funded. The Trump administration plans to use the method for funding cuts again “soon,” Vought said. “If this continues to pass, we’re likely to send up another rescissions package that will come soon, and we’ll be working on that to try to get that across the finish line,” he said. “We’re not there yet. I have nothing to announce, but we’ve been talking about it, and there’s certainly enthusiasm.”

Democrats have suggested the rescissions process has damaged the ability of Congress to move forward with appropriations in a bipartisan fashion. Republicans don’t need Democratic votes for a rescissions package, but they do for the next government spending bill, which could mean a government shutdown in the future. “It will undermine our trust in the system, because Republicans can vote for one thing one day and then collude with President Trump to take it out the next,” Sen. Chris Van Hollen said Tuesday.

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