Five Republicans vote ‘no’ on bringing reconciliation bill out of committee – Washington Examiner
Five Republicans in the House of Representatives voted against advancing a reconciliation bill out of the Budget Committee, joining Democrats to defeat the measure in a 21-16 vote. The dissenting Republicans include Ralph Norman (SC), Chip Roy (TX), Josh Brecheen (OK), Andrew Clyde (GA), and Lloyd Smucker (PA). They expressed concerns about the bill’s provisions,particularly regarding work requirements for Medicaid and tax implications related to the Inflation Reduction Act. Despite previous discussions, they felt significant changes were necessary before supporting the bill, wich they believe does not adequately address deficit concerns. Some members of the House Freedom Caucus, to which these dissenters belong, indicated ongoing negotiations to improve the package, seeking resolutions over the weekend.
Five Republicans vote ‘no’ on bringing reconciliation bill out of committee
Five House Republicans joined Democrats in voting against advancing the reconciliation bill out of the Budget Committee on Friday.
Reps. Ralph Norman (R-SC), Chip Roy (R-TX), Josh Brecheen (R-OK), Andrew Clyde (R-GA), and Lloyd Smucker (R-PA) were the members who sunk the bill in a 21-16 vote.
From the beginning of negotiations, Norman and Roy said they were a “no” on the bill unless significant changes were made. Norman had said he was seeking answers on three areas: work requirements for Medicaid, the SALT cap, and the phasing out of the Inflation Reduction Act, several of which do not scale back until after 2028 or later.
Roy had attacked Democrats for claiming Republicans were cutting Medicaid and giving tax breaks to billionaires, but noted that “this bill falls profoundly short.”
“It does not do what we say it does with respect to deficits,” Roy said, adding, “We shouldn’t say that we’re doing something we’re not doing. The fact of the matter is this bill has backloaded savings and has frontloaded spending.”
In a social media post after the vote, Roy noted, “We were making progress, but the vote was called, and the problems were not resolved, so I voted no. I am staying in Washington this weekend to deliver.”
Brecheen and Clyde had remained noncommittal but ultimately voted against the bill. They were unable to get reassurances from House GOP leadership and the White House on their requests.
Brecheen noted he had problems with the work requirements for Medicaid starting in 2029. Clyde cited taxes on firearm purchases as part of his reason.
“The House now has a historic opportunity to repeal the burdensome taxation, registration, and regulation of short-barreled firearms and suppressors under the National Firearms Act,” Clyde said.
Brecheen, Clyde, Norman, and Roy are all members of the House Freedom Caucus. Two members of the Freedom Caucus did vote in favor of passing it out of committee.
In a statement, the caucus said, “Reps. Roy, Norman, Brecheen, Clyde and others continue to work in good faith to enact the President’s ‘Big Beautiful Bill’ — we were making progress before the vote in the Budget Committee and will continue negotiations to further improve the reconciliation package. We are not going anywhere and we will continue to work through the weekend.”
BIG BEAUTIFUL BILL IN THE BALANCE: GOP FRACTURES OVER MEDICAID WORK REQUIREMENTS
Smucker, the vice chairman of the committee, was originally a “yes” vote but then changed his vote to “no.” He later said he “fully” supports the “One Big Beautiful Bill (OBBB).”
“My vote today in the Budget Committee is a procedural requirement to preserve the committee’s opportunity to reconsider the motion to advance OBBB,” he said.
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