Jamie McIntyre | Washington Examinar
WAR ON ‘WOKE’: House Republicans have fired a thunderous shot across the bow of the Biden Pentagon in what appears to be a prelude to an all-out culture war over what conservatives believe are “woke” policies that foster division and “bring discredit upon the military.”
In a closed session, the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Defense passed an $826 billion Pentagon budget for fiscal 2024, which in addition to cutting $16 billion from the Biden administration’s $842 request, cuts $1 billion in an effort to shrink the Pentagon’s civilian workforce, while targeting abortion travel funds, drag queen story hours, and gender-transition surgeries.
A summary of the bill released by the subcommittee contains a laundry list of what are labeled “Conservative Priorities,” which prohibit the use of federal funds for any of the following:
In a statement, Subcommittee Chairman Ken Calvert (R-CA) touted the bill’s other provisions, including prioritizing funding to counter China, increasing the military’s role in combating the flow of fentanyl into the United States and supporting service members and their families. “[I] am proud that my bill includes a historic pay increase – an average of 30% – to help junior enlisted service members keep up with the rising cost of living.”
DEMOCRATS CRY FOUL: Democrats on the subcommittee immediately blasted the bill, which they say breaks the debt ceiling budget bill negotiated by House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) and President Joe Biden, which is now the law of the land.
They argue the provisions targeting diversity and other “woke” policies will doom the bill’s chances in the Senate and increase the chances of a government shutdown at the end of September.
“This bill is a non-starter that fails to meet the agreement signed into law,” said Rep. Rosa DeLauro (D-CT), the top Democrat on the full Appropriations Committee. “Republicans have given us a bill that cuts $1.1 billion in salaries for civilian personnel – career civil servants who patriotically support our armed forces – $714.8 million for climate-related programs, a staggering $1.9 billion for the administration’s Multiyear Procurement request that would cover the costs of buying in bulk, and of course, bans funding for diversity, equity and inclusion programs.”
“I urge my colleagues to focus on the end goal of funding our government rather than pushing messaging bills that have no future,” DeLauro said in a statement.
“This bill contains the most extreme social policy riders I have ever seen in a Defense Appropriations bill. These riders make it almost impossible to gain bipartisan support,” said Rep. Betty McCollum (D-MN), the ranking Democrat on the subcommittee.
“Reductions in civilian personnel will burden our service members with additional duties without finding meaningful savings. Cuts to climate resiliency programs will leave the Department more vulnerable to the impacts of climate change,” McCollum said in her statement. “Our service members make immense sacrifices, along with their families, on behalf of our nation and they deserve better from Congress.”
STORMY BUDGET BATTLES AHEAD: The discord in the Defense Appropriations Subcommittee is a microcosm of the bigger debate that will dominate the weeks ahead.
In an attempt to mollify House Freedom Caucus members who believe McCarthy sold them out in the budget deal with Biden, the House GOP leadership has promised to advance bills at fiscal 2022 levels, instead of the 2023 levels accepted in the debt ceiling agreement.
“While the Fiscal Responsibility Act set the topline spending limit, it does not require that we mark up our bills to that level,” said Rep. Kay Granger (R-TX), chairwoman of the Appropriations Committee. “Simply put, the debt ceiling bill set a ceiling, not a floor, for Fiscal Year 2024 bills.”
Democrats question whether Republicans even have the votes to pass the lower spending bills in the House, or whether, like the debt ceiling compromise, a coalition of centrist Democrats and Republicans will cooperate to plus-up the measure, especially when it comes to defense spending.
Republicans are working against a debt deal measure that would impose an across-the-board spending cut of 1% if all 12 budget bills are not passed by Sept. 30. “With just months before the end of the fiscal year, we must not delay,” Granger warned.
“It’s going to be a problem,” Sen. Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV), the No. 5 Senate Republican and an Appropriations Committee member, told the Hill. “I don’t want to co-opt what Sen. [Susan] Collins (R-ME) might say, but … we struck an agreement that will write to those numbers. We’ll go into a collaborative conference, try to hash it out, but I don’t think it’s going to be easy.”
