Today on the Hill: Budget Day as White House Proposes Deep Cuts to Government Programs

It’s budget day in Washington as the White House is expected to release its full spending proposal for the 2018 fiscal year. Many details of the budget have already leaked, outlining significant cuts to the Medicaid program, agriculture subsidies, and Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI), while continuing to increase the budget for defense and homeland security. The budget document also projects a balanced budget within 10 years, but that calculation relies upon economic growth figures that many economists believe to be unrealistic. Regardless, the budget has already been met with a cold shoulder on Capitol Hill, with Senate Majority Whip John Cornyn (R-TX) suggesting that the budget may be “dead on arrival” in Congress. Nevertheless, President Trump’s first full budget offers a glimpse into his Administration’s priorities in the coming years and will serve as a reference point for future spending considerations.

Floor action in Congress today will follow a similar pattern to yesterday as the Senate works on the nomination of John Sullivan to be Deputy Secretary of State and the House considers a series of suspension bills. A cloture vote on Sullivan’s nomination is expected this morning, with a final up-or-down vote also possible before the Senate closes for the day. Next on the Senate docket is the nomination of Amul Thapar to serve as a U.S. Circuit Judge in the Sixth Circuit. Democrats are expected to oppose Thapar’s nomination over his support for the Supreme Court’s decision in the 2010 case  Citizens’ United v. FEC, which lifted some limitations on spending in federal elections.

The twelve suspension bills on the House floor today address issues ranging from juvenile justice (H.R. 1809) to veterans’ services reform (H.R. 2288). A full list of those measures can be found here.