The White House is expecting Republicans to at least partially strip out funding for a tunnel project in New York and New Jersey in the omnibus spending bill that will be released Monday night or Tuesday morning, after President Trump has threatened to veto the entire bill if the money is included.
The roughly $30 billion dollar price tag on construction of tunnels that would connect New Jersey and New York under the Hudson River, known as the Gateway Project, was supposed to be shouldered by both the federal government and the two states linked by the tunnels. But Trump and Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao have demanded New Jersey and New York foot more of the bill for a project whose benefits would be concentrated in those two states, touching off a round of negotiations that critics say Trump created primarily to upset Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., a fierce advocate for Gateway.
A senior administration official told the Washington Examiner that the White House does not expect the omnibus bill to include the full $900 million that House Appropriations Committee Chairman Rodney Frelinghuysen, R-N.J., has fought to secure.
“I think it will be reflective of the administration’s position on Gateway,” the senior administration official said Monday of the spending bill.
Although Trump is said to care deeply about blocking Gateway funds from the omnibus, the official said Trump’s campaign against it is not the main “sticking point” in congressional negotiations.
Both Democrats and Republicans from New Jersey and New York have spent weeks pushing the White House to back off its opposition to the project, citing the massive economic benefits Gateway is expected to bring to the region. The tunnels that presently run under the Hudson River are aging quickly, and transit officials may need to close them in the coming years to administer major repairs, which would cause crippling delays for commuters.
However, conservative lawmakers in the House share Trump’s opposition to funding Gateway in the omnibus, and see it as a fiscal responsibility issue rather than a political fight with Schumer. A House Freedom Caucus source told the Washington Examiner that members of the conservative voting bloc are “very opposed” to the inclusion of Gateway funding in the bill, which may give Trump cover if northeast lawmakers demand more money.
Rep. Ted Budd, R-N.C., a Freedom Caucus member, has spent months working to prevent Congress from funding such a significant share of Gateway.
“This is something we’ve been fighting against since September of last year,” Budd told the Washington Examiner. He described the project as a “complete boondoggle” for New York and New Jersey.
“This is a fiscal responsibility issue,” Budd said. “If New York and New Jersey say this is important to their local economy… well, if so, then two of the richest states in the nation can certainly afford it.”
Congress must pass a spending bill before Friday in order to avert a government shutdown.
Other points of contention in discussions about the omnibus include immigration, gun policy and healthcare spending.
Trump has not threatened to withhold his signature from the legislation for any reason other than Gateway funding, however, making it a significant issue lawmakers will be watching when the bill comes out this week.
