A government spending deal is in the works in Congress that would exclude some important GOP policy riders, including one to tighten up the screening process for refugees, but includes others, such an end to the ban on crude oil exports.
House Speaker Paul Ryan, R-Wis., told members of the House GOP conference he would walk them through the details of the omnibus spending bill and tax extenders legislation on Tuesday evening, with plans for a Thursday vote, allowing members three legislative days to review the measures. But even so, aides insisted there was no final deal yet.
“While progress has been made, there was no deal to report tonight and discussions are continuing,” Ryan spokeswoman AshLee Strong said Monday evening. “Speaker Ryan reiterated his commitment to the three-day rule and voiced optimism of an agreement being passed this week.”
That means lawmakers will need to pass another multi-day government funding extension in the next day or two, since a short-term patch runs out on Wednesday.
Republicans for several days have debated whether to tighten up the rules for allowing Syrian and Iraqi refugees into the country, as fears mount that terrorists might enter the U.S. disguised as refugees. But aides close to the negotiations say the spending measure lawmakers are writing would exclude that language, and instead, the bill will include language that would tighten the security of the visa waiver program.
Both measures passed the House earlier this month with broad bipartisan support, but most Democrats oppose the refugee bill, arguing that it would essentially halt the program.
Without the Syrian refugee language, many conservatives are likely to oppose the spending measure. Those GOP lawmakers said they are already reluctant to support the bill because it exceeds budget caps, and say they are looking for strong policy riders to earn their support.
But Democrats have fought strenuously against the riders, including other proposed language rolling back President Obama’s executive actions on the environment.
House Appropriations Committee Chairman Hal Rogers, R-Ky., told the Washington Examiner that lawmakers had to write a bill the Senate would pass and President Obama would sign. And Democrats aren’t getting everything they want, either.
Democrats are insisting on language that would end a federal law that prevents the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention from promoting gun control. But that language isn’t likely to make it into the final spending deal.
Lawmakers are likely to consider separately a bill that would extend dozens of popular tax breaks, some of them permanently. Democrats say they oppose the legislation because it costs too much and doesn’t sufficiently extend tax breaks for lower-income earners.
The tax bill includes perhaps the biggest victory for the GOP in the end-of-year deal. It lifts a 1970’s ban on exporting crude oil, something Republicans have been seeking for years.
With little Democratic support expected, it’s likely to pass with mostly Republican votes.
