![The U.S. Capitol in the Summer. / [Image by Andrew Hart via Flickr, CC BY-SA 2.0]](https://staticr1.blastingcdn.com/media/photogallery/2017/7/20/660x290/b_502x220x82/the-us-capitol-in-the-summer-image-by-andrew-hart-via-flickr-cc-by-sa-20_1457053.jpg "The U.S. Capitol in the Summer. / [Image by Andrew Hart via Flickr, CC BY-SA 2.0]")
Last Tuesday, House Republicans revealed their Budget Resolution for 2018 which many reports have said will be used as a vehicle to change taxes. The resolution was revealed after months of infighting among Republicans; a resolution which many say will drastically change the federal government. According to reports from various media sources, the House Republican budget resolution calls for $200 billion dollars in cuts to programs that are referred to as mandatory in order to pave the way for President Trump's tax reform.
Budget started with Trump proposal
During the first several months of Donald Trump's presidency, the administration submitted a budget proposal that most considered "draconian" which would slash spending from the nation's social welfare programs to funnel more money to the military. Congress made it clear at the time that those proposals were considered non-starters. It's also the growing view among some Republican lawmakers that the reason President Trump made his cabinet picks to lead federal agencies was to make sure they crippled those departments to the best of their ability.
All of those cabinet members were put before congressional hearings where they were lambasted by committee leaders for wanting to cut too much.
Committee members even said so in all of the hearings where they received those proposals and in most cases said that Congress would write their own budgets. Regardless of this, the recent resolution put forward by House Republicans appeared to have used the President's initial proposals as guidelines for the cuts they want to make.
But even with that, given that The Republican Party holds the congressional majority in both the House and the Senate, they have nonetheless expressed their need to make those cuts.
Moderates stall passing of budget
The infighting with Congressional Republicans is constantly shifting between moderates and those of the extreme-right with the moderates in this case trying to make sure that those cuts are not as devastating as the White House wants.
Nonetheless, before the budget panel set their numbers for next year, CNN reported in an article titled: "House GOP budget slashes billions in spending," that the appropriations committee put together spending bills that sent $621 billion to defense spending. Unlike the proposals submitted by the administration, however, the committee has also put $511 billion to non-military domestic programs. Included in their spending bill is $1.6 billion that the trump administration wants to use to build 3-miles of their border wall in Santa Ana National Wildlife Refuge in Texas.
According the Rep. Diane Black (R-TN.), the proposal, referred to as"Building a Better America" is one that the Senate GOP intends to pass under the reconciliation rules.
Much like the Republican health care bill, the budget spending bill only requires a simple majority of Republicans to vote for it. The reason for this is because of the lack of involvement from Democrats which makes the possibility of a 60 threshold unlikely. Needless to say, Democrats are not in line with the spending bills which also conveniently adds to the reason Republicans are using the rules of reconciliation. Democrats have expressed their rejection over the cuts as well as any spending that goes to building a border wall. Its been reported, however, that the House has had to strip down their budget bill which appropriation experts believe the Senate will ignore.
