House Passes Budget Deal with Majority of Republicans Opposed
By Bridget Johnson Oct 28, 2015 4:25 PM ET
The bipartisan two-year budget deal that raises the debt ceiling and averts shutdown was passed in the House with unanimous Democratic support today.
Seventy-nine Republicans backed the bill, while 167 opposed it for a final tally of 266-167. It now heads to the Senate.
House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio), Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.), Majority Whip Steve Scalise (R-La.) and Conference Chair Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-Wash.) were among the "aye" votes.
So was House Ways and Means Chairman Paul Ryan (R-Wis.), who earlier won the nomination to replace Boehner.
McCarthy said the House "acted to protect our economy and American jobs, while preserving our hard-fought accomplishments toward reducing our debt."
"This agreement will strengthen our national security and provide needed resources to the men and women who serve this country in our armed forces. It includes real reforms to entitlement programs that are on the verge of bankruptcy, reduces unsustainable mandatory spending, and repeals a burdensome Obamacare mandate. And it establishes 'regular order' for next year's appropriations process," he said.
"This deal is not perfect. However, too often we are forced to govern by crisis—and too often these Washington-made cliffs hold us back from laying out a bold vision and from pursuing real solutions for the American people. It doesn't need to be like this, and I look forward to continue working with my colleagues on solutions that will make Washington work better and change the direction of our country."
House Budget Committee Chairman Tom Price (R-Ga.) voted against the deal, as did Rules Committee Chairman Pete Sessions (R-Texas).
"Today's deal irresponsibly raises the debt ceiling and blows through spending caps without adequately tackling the true drivers of our debt – entitlement programs," Sessions said. "I could not vote for this bill because increasing the debt limit without real long-term reforms will be bad for jobs, bad for North Texas families, and bad for our overall economic recovery."
Rep. Renee Ellmers (R-N.C.), usually a leadership ally, complained that "not only was this 144-page budget made publicly available shortly before midnight on Monday, but we are being asked to vote on passage of the measure a mere 48 hours later."
"This is just one of many reasons why 2nd District constituents – and myself – remain frustrated with the ways of Washington," Ellmers said in a statement. "This 'midnight budget' is no way to fund our military and instead makes harmful cuts to crop insurance, removing the certainty our farmers need to continue feeding America."
"In the past, we have been promised that in exchange for raising the debt ceiling, we would curtail wasteful spending. However, we have yet to see these significant reforms or meaningful spending cuts materialize. I cannot support this fiscally irresponsible bill."
The "Willing to Play Ball" Caucus, the House #GOP that supported budget deal pic.twitter.com/x08CITjMR5
— Luke Russert (@LukeRussert) October 28, 2015