{"id":2343848,"date":"2024-09-20T10:16:02","date_gmt":"2024-09-20T14:16:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/bipartisan-duo-works-around-gop-leaders-to-force-vote-on-social-security-bill-washington-examiner\/"},"modified":"2024-09-20T10:18:46","modified_gmt":"2024-09-20T14:18:46","slug":"bipartisan-duo-works-around-gop-leaders-to-force-vote-on-social-security-bill-washington-examiner","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/bipartisan-duo-works-around-gop-leaders-to-force-vote-on-social-security-bill-washington-examiner\/","title":{"rendered":"Bipartisan duo works around GOP leaders to force vote on Social Security bill &#8211; Washington Examiner"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">32<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fbipartisan-duo-works-around-gop-leaders-to-force-vote-on-social-security-bill-washington-examiner%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2343848&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>The Social Security Fairness Act, introduced by Representatives Garret Graves (R-LA) and \u2063Abigail\u200c Spanberger (D-VA), aims to repeal two long-standing provisions that reduce Social Security benefits for individuals receiving pensions from state or\u200b local governments. This legislation\u200d has recently gained significant traction, \u2063achieving 218 signatures on a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/house-republicans-push-for-vote-on-born-alive-bill\/\" title=\"House Republicans Push for Vote on Born Alive Bill\">discharge petition<\/a>, which allows it to be brought to the House floor for a vote, bypassing opposition from House Speaker\u200b Mike Johnson\u2062 (R-LA).<\/p>\n<p>The two provisions in question, established in 1983, are the Windfall Elimination \u200dProvision (WEP) and the\u2064 Government Pension Offset (GPO). These rules are said \u2064to unfairly affect nearly 3 million people by reducing their Social Security benefits. The repeal would cost\u2063 an estimated \u2062$195\u200c billion over the next decade, according to the Congressional Budget Office.<\/p>\n<p>Both Graves\u200d and Spanberger have expressed determination \u2063to \u200csee this\u2062 bill passed into law,\u2062 emphasizing its\u200d <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/rep-mccaul-believes-ndaa-will-become-a-bipartisan-bill\/\" title=\"Rep. McCaul expects the NDAA to gain bipartisan support.\">bipartisan \u200dsupport<\/a> among 47 Republicans and 171 Democrats. Despite its current backing, \u2064past attempts\u200b to navigate\u2064 around party\u200d leadership through similar methods have \u2062rarely been\u200c successful, noting that\u2062 the last effective discharge petition was in 2015.<\/p>\n<p>While there is \u2063broad support, some lawmakers and experts have raised concerns\u200c about consequences of a full repeal, stating \u2062that while the \u2062provisions are\u2064 complex and \u200drequire reform, complete elimination could disrupt the \u2062principles of equity within the Social Security system.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<p><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><\/p>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-button\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-icon td-icon-mobile\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-header-search-button-mob dropdown-toggle\" data-toggle=\"dropdown\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-search-icon td-icon-search\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-button\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-icon td-icon-mobile\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<div class=\"tdb-drop-down-search\" aria-labelledby=\"td-header-search-button\">\n<div class=\"tdb-drop-down-search-inner\">\n<form method=\"get\" class=\"tdb-search-form\" action=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/\"><\/form>\n<div class=\"tdb-aj-search\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/#\" role=\"button\" aria-label=\"Search\" class=\"tdb-head-search-btn dropdown-toggle\" data-toggle=\"dropdown\"><i class=\"tdb-search-icon td-icon-search\"><\/i><\/a><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<h1 class=\"tdb-title-text\">Bipartisan duo works around GOP leaders to force vote on Social Security bill<\/h1>\n<div><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-title-line\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<div id=\"Brid_1718439\" class=\"tpd-featured-video bridtv\"><\/div>\n<p>Reps. Garret Graves (R-LA) and Abigail Spanberger (D-VA) overcame resistance from leadership to move legislation through <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/congress\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title>Congress<\/a> that repeals two long-standing programs affecting <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/social-security\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title>Social Security<\/a> benefits for recipients across the country.<\/p>\n<div class=\"article-paywall\">\n<p>The bipartisan Social Security Fairness Act earned the support of 128 members of Congress on Thursday, enabling it to be brought to the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/house\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"House\">House<\/a> floor for a vote.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>Using a rarely executed legislative tactic called the discharge petition, Graves and Spanberger garnered enough signatures to bypass House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) and move their bill through the lower chamber.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">&#128680;BREAKING: Graves-Spanberger Discharge Petition Reaches 218 Signatures, Enough to Force U.S. House Vote on Bipartisan Bill to Eliminate WEP &amp; GPO. <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/ijB4VA7q5W\">https:\/\/t.co\/ijB4VA7q5W<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/s3XXrvcjAD\">pic.twitter.com\/s3XXrvcjAD<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; Rep. Garret Graves (@RepGarretGraves) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/RepGarretGraves\/status\/1836858189800951993?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">September 19, 2024<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p> <script data-cfasync=\"false\" src=\"http:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/cdn-cgi\/scripts\/5c5dd728\/cloudflare-static\/email-decode.min.js\"><\/script><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script> <\/p>\n<p>The <a href=\"https:\/\/www.congress.gov\/bill\/118th-congress\/house-bill\/82\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title>Social Security Fairness Act of 2023<\/a> would repeal two provisions that reduce Social Security benefits for people who receive other benefits, such as a pension from a state or local government. The<a href=\"https:\/\/www.congress.gov\/bill\/118th-congress\/house-bill\/82\"> <\/a>legislation eliminates two programs established in 1983 that the bipartisan duo believes &ldquo;unfairly&rdquo; reduce or eliminate Social Security benefits for nearly 3 million people. It would cost $195 billion over the next decade to implement, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cbo.gov\/publication\/60690\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title>according<\/a> to the Congressional Budget Office.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;We will be dogged in making sure the Social Security Fairness Act passes in the U.S. House, passes in the U.S. Senate, and finally gets signed into law,&rdquo; Graves and Spanberger said in a joint statement.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;On a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/ten-gop-senators-counter-bidens-1-9-trillion-relief-plan-request-meeting\/\" title=\"Ten GOP Senators Counter Biden\u2019s .9 Trillion Relief Plan, Request Meeting\">bipartisan basis<\/a>, we have taken on something that is completely unjust &mdash; that has been going on for over four decades,&rdquo; Graves said. &ldquo;People from the very left of Congress to the very, very right that don&rsquo;t agree on a damn thing, it&rsquo;s great to see folks uniting and fixing something that&rsquo;s been unjust.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>Forty-seven Republicans and 171 Democrats support the bill. It had stalled in the House Ways and Means Committee as Johnson appeared unenthusiastic about bringing it up for a vote on the floor.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Graves, a top Republican negotiator on the debt limit, flanked by Kevin McCarthy, right, talks to reporters about their work at the Capitol in Washington on Sunday, May 28, 2023. (AP Photo\/J. Scott Applewhite)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>It marks the second time in recent months that a Republican has bypassed Johnson&rsquo;s leadership through the discharge petition. Rep. Greg Steube (R-FL) used the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/republican-objections-to-bidens-vaccine-mandate-could-force-weeklong-government-shutdown\/\" title=\"Republican Objections To Biden\u2019s Vaccine Mandate Could Force Weeklong Government Shutdown\">procedural tactic<\/a> in May to push his disaster tax relief bill to the House floor.&nbsp;However, the go-around rarely works. Before this year, the last time a discharge petition worked was in 2015.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>While Graves and Spanberger want to eliminate the windfall elimination provision and the government pension offset, other lawmakers and experts have warned a full repeal <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/2875210\/the-social-security-fairness-act-is-unfair\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title>could backfire<\/a>.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>During a House committee hearing on the Social Security Fairness Act earlier this year, Bipartisan Policy Center chief economist Jason Fichtner conceded that the programs &ldquo;create an overly complex structure&rdquo; and needed reform.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>But he warned that &ldquo;fully repealing the WEP and GPO would violate the principles of fairness and equity that these provisions were intended to protect.&rdquo;&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>Charles Blahous, a senior research strategist at George Mason University, added that the programs were &ldquo;necessary features&rdquo; but that their current forms should be adapted.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"><strong><\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n<p>Reps. <a href=\"https:\/\/arrington.house.gov\/news\/documentsingle.aspx?DocumentID=1087\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title>Jodey Arrington<\/a> (R-TX) and <a href=\"https:\/\/neal.house.gov\/news\/documentsingle.aspx?DocumentID=3762\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title>Richard Neal <\/a>(D-MA) have introduced legislation that would do that. Their bills address &ldquo;shortcomings&rdquo; with the WEP and GPO without entirely eliminating the government programs.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>The battle for Social Security reforms in the House comes as the topic has become a heated matter of debate throughout the 2024 presidential campaign. Former President Donald Trump recently pledged to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/campaigns\/presidential\/3154823\/trump-tax-giveaways-harris-working-class-pitch\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">end taxes<\/a>&nbsp;on Social Security benefits should he win reelection. Meanwhile, Vice President Kamala Harris has repeatedly accused Trump of wanting to &ldquo;cut&rdquo; the program. There is no evidence to back up her claim.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p> <script>!function(){var g=window;g.googletag=g.googletag||{},g.googletag.cmd=g.googletag.cmd||[],g.googletag.cmd.push(function(){g.googletag.pubads().setTargeting(\"has-featured-video\",\"true\")})}();<\/script><script>var _bp=_bp||[];_bp.push({\"div\":\"Brid_1718439\",\"obj\":{\"id\":\"27789\",\"width\":\"1280\",\"height\":\"720\",\"stickyDirection\":\"below\",\"video\":\"1718439\"}});<\/script><script defer src=\"https:\/\/services.brid.tv\/player\/build\/brid.min.js\"><\/script><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>A bipartisan pair of representatives, Garret Graves (R-LA) and Abigail Spanberger (D-VA), have successfully navigated around GOP leadership to advance a bill aimed at repealing two longstanding programs that impact Social Security benefits for recipients nationwide. The Social Security Fairness Act received backing from 128 members of Congress on Thursday, allowing it to be presented for a vote in the House. By utilizing a rarely used legislative maneuver known as a discharge petition, Graves and Spanberger collected enough signatures to bypass House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) and push their bill through the lower chamber.<\/p>\n<p>The proposed legislation seeks to eliminate two provisions that reduce Social Security benefits for individuals who also receive other forms of compensation, such as pensions from state or local governments. These provisions were established in 1983 and are viewed by the bipartisan sponsors as &#8220;unfair,&#8221; affecting nearly 3 million people. According to the Congressional Budget Office, implementing this act would cost $195 billion over the next decade.<\/p>\n<p>In a joint statement, Graves and Spanberger expressed their commitment to ensuring that the Social Security Fairness Act passes both houses of Congress and is signed into law. They emphasized that they are addressing an issue deemed unjust that has persisted for over forty years. The bill has garnered support from 47 Republicans and 171 Democrats but had previously stalled in the House Ways and Means Committee due to Johnson&#8217;s lack of enthusiasm about bringing it up for discussion.<\/p>\n<p>This marks the second instance recently where a Republican has circumvented Johnson\u2019s leadership using a discharge petition; Rep. Greg Steube (R-FL) employed this tactic in May for his disaster tax relief proposal. However, such maneuvers are infrequent; prior to this year, the last successful discharge petition occurred in 2015.<\/p>\n<p>While Graves and Spanberger aim to fully repeal both provisions\u2014the windfall elimination provision (WEP) and government pension offset (GPO)\u2014some lawmakers have cautioned against complete repeal due to potential negative consequences. During earlier discussions on the act within committee hearings, experts acknowledged that while these programs create unnecessary complexity requiring reform, outright elimination could undermine fairness principles they were designed to uphold.<\/p>\n<p>Other representatives like Jodey Arrington (R-TX) and Richard Neal (D-MA) have introduced alternative legislation aimed at addressing issues with WEP and GPO without completely abolishing them.<\/p>\n<p>As discussions surrounding Social Security reforms intensify amid the ongoing presidential campaign season\u2014where former President Donald Trump has promised tax cuts on benefits if reelected\u2014Vice President Kamala Harris has accused him of wanting cuts without evidence supporting her claims<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3142,"featured_media":2343849,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/Johnson-Graves.webp","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[538],"tags":[3667,6203,4762,32603,33104],"class_list":["post-2343848","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-washington-examiner","tag-bipartisan","tag-gop","tag-legislation","tag-political-news","tag-social-security"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/Johnson-Graves.webp","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2343848","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3142"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2343848"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2343848\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2343849"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2343848"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2343848"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2343848"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}