No deals have been made between GOP leadership and House Freedom Caucus members on must-pass spending legislation despite claims to the contrary ahead of a crucial rules vote on Wednesday afternoon.
The House narrowly advanced the rule on its annual military construction appropriations bill with a 217-206 vote, overcoming intraparty tensions between centrist Republicans and hard-line conservatives who threatened to vote against any spending bills unless their demands were met. Republicans were seen meeting in House Speaker Kevin McCarthy’s office in the hours leading up to the vote, and it remained unclear whether the rule had enough GOP support up until the moment it was brought to the floor.
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Just minutes before the House reconvened to vote on the rule, Rep. Ralph Norman (R-SC) announced a deal had been struck between HFC members and GOP leaders on the military spending bill, paving the way for its passage later this week.
“I previously was opposed to it, but they worked the things out with the top number, so we’re voting for the rule,” Norman told reporters ahead of the vote.
Norman detailed the alleged deal made between the caucus and McCarthy, noting the two parties made an agreement on a $1.47 trillion number for all 12 appropriations bills with no rescissions.
When asked if that deal was agreed to with the speaker, Norman said: “That’s my understanding.”
However, when pressed on the agreement, McCarthy said no deal had been made on the spending bills, adding that he hadn’t spoken with Norman about the matter.
“I didn’t talk to Ralph,” McCarthy said. “There’s no new agreement.”
Other HFC members confirmed no deal had been made with the speaker, noting there are still demands that have not been met by some in the caucus.
“It's a mixed bag. I mean, there's some people that want to have all the topline numbers on all 12 bills done before we move any more,” a senior GOP member told the Washington Examiner. “There's other people that want commitments on red lines, what we would accept and what we wouldn't. So there's not just one request. It's very scattered.”
The House is expected to vote on the military appropriations bill as soon as Thursday afternoon, making it the first of 12 spending bills to get a full vote in the lower chamber. Lawmakers are also working on advancing the agriculture appropriations bill this week, with GOP leaders aiming for a vote by Friday.
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Congress has until the end of September to pass its annual budget before the new fiscal year begins on Oct. 1, or else lawmakers risk a government shutdown. Budget disagreements typically drag out as both parties fight to include their own priorities, with a final deal often not made until the eleventh hour after a marathon voting session.
However, that process has been made even more complicated this year. Some Freedom Caucus members are already signaling opposition to the spending levels agreed to in the debt limit deal and threatening to vote against budget legislation unless spending levels are cut. Those sentiments are likely to put the House on a collision course with Senate Democrats, who are likely drafting budgets with a much larger number.