House GOP ditches 'tarnished' omnibus bill

House Republicans this year are eager to ditch the “omnibus,” the giant spending package encompassing most or all of the dozen appropriations measures that have funded the federal government in recent years, and instead want to try several smaller “minibuses” this time around to placate conservatives.

“There’s a realization within the conference that an omnibus is likely out of the question,” House Appropriations Committee Chairman Hal Rogers, R-Ky., said following a closed-door meeting with GOP lawmakers over spending. “So the idea is to try to do a few minibuses that are bite-sized appropriations that we can digest and look at.”