Pence group tells GOP not to ‘settle’ in budget fight
The conservative advocacy group Advancing American Freedom, founded by former vice President Mike Pence, has urged Republican lawmakers not to accept President Biden’s current federal spending levels in upcoming budget negotiations. In a letter sent to GOP congressional offices, the group emphasized the need for steep budget cuts to return federal spending to pre-pandemic amounts.
The letter highlights that merely keeping the government open is insufficient; rather,conservatives should focus on reducing the size and scope of government while advancing conservative policies. Advancing American Freedom also called for defunding certain programs, including transgender surgeries and Medicaid coverage incentives for illegal immigrants, while supporting the continuation of former President Trump’s tax cut law, the One Big Stunning Bill Act.
These demands come amid ongoing bipartisan efforts to avoid a government shutdown by the September 30 deadline. Senate Democrats are leveraging expiring Obamacare premium subsidies in the debate, complicating agreement efforts. The national debt has surged from $23 trillion before the pandemic to over $37 trillion today, contributing to tensions over fiscal policy.
The group criticized the Congressional budget Office’s projections that Trump’s tax law would add nearly $4 trillion to the debt over a decade,calling the estimates “wildly inaccurate” and accusing the CBO of neglecting key economic growth factors. Advancing American Freedom’s message is clear: Republican conservatives should take a firm stand now to reduce government spending and oppose expanding federal programs that they believe undermine customary American values.
Pence group tells GOP not to ‘settle for the Biden spending levels’ in budget fight
The conservative advocacy group founded by former Vice President Mike Pence, Advancing American Freedom, urged Republican lawmakers on Capitol Hill to commit to steep budget cuts to return federal spending to pre-pandemic levels.
The message, relayed in a Monday letter sent to GOP congressional offices and first seen by the Washington Examiner, comes amid bipartisan efforts to fund the government by a Sept. 30 shutdown deadline.
“With the upcoming appropriations fight, it is of the utmost importance that conservatives do not settle for [former President Joe Biden’s] spending levels,” wrote AAF President Tim Chapman and Executive Vice President Paul Teller. “Merely keeping the government open is not sufficient. Shrinking the size and scope of government while advancing conservative policies into law is a win.”
The group also urged Republican appropriators to complement the implementation of President Donald Trump’s tax cut and spending law, the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, by defunding “dangerous transgender surgeries and eliminating incentives for states to cover illegal aliens on Medicaid.”
Congress is expected to try to pass a stopgap funding measure in the coming weeks to give appropriators more time to craft a year-long budget; passage of any legislation in the Senate will require Democratic support to break a filibuster.
Senate Democrats, wielding what leverage they have in the minority, are thrusting expiring Obamacare credits into the center of the shutdown brawl by demanding the extension of enhanced health insurance premium subsidies set to expire at year’s end. The White House’s latest attempt to claw back spending previously approved by Congress, through what’s known as a pocket rescission, is also complicating efforts to reach a bipartisan deal that will be needed to stave off a shutdown.
The current national debt stands at over $37 trillion, which exploded from $23 trillion before the pandemic due to government stimulus programs for workers, less revenue, and overall increases across federal agencies. The deficit for fiscal 2024 was roughly $1.8 trillion.
PENCE GROUP AAF TELLS HILL REPUBLICANS TO IGNORE ‘WILDLY INACCURATE’ CBO
Heartburn over the national debt from fiscal hawks presented a major point of contention this summer as the GOP debated Trump’s tax agenda in his megabill, with the Congressional Budget Office predicting the law will add nearly $4 trillion to the debt over the next decade. Many Republicans rejected the analysis as “wildly inaccurate,” including AAF, arguing the nonpartisan budget forecaster failed to consider key economic growth factors and has a shoddy track record of reliable cost scoring.
“The Swamp will always claim the best time to fight is next time,” AAF wrote in its letter. “But we all know the truth: the time to fight is now. Not one more dollar for programs undermining the American way of life!”
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