On Wednesday, House Republicans unveiled their solution to President Biden’s 2022 budget, placing forward a document which they said would balance the federal budget in five years, while at the same time cutting taxes by $1.9 trillion.
According to the summary of the proposal by the Republican Study Committee (RSC), they would remove a string of discretionary programs and reform federal programs such as Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) into block grants, institute “zero-baseline budgeting,” and more.
Since winning back the majority, @SpeakerPelosi is 0/3 at producing a budget.
TODAY, #RSC is rolling out our plan that will cut spending by more than $14 trillion and balance the budget in just 5 years.https://t.co/jWKpJ0ayYX
— RSC (@RepublicanStudy) May 19, 2021
The RSC says these budget cuts would bring the country to a balanced budget in five years. This combined with reduced regulations, increases in the retirement age for Social Security and the eligibility age for Medicare.
The RSC Chairman and Indiana representative, Rep. Jim Banks said in a statement that the Democrat Party is “introducing socialism” and expanding, rather than decreasing the role of government. Rep. Banks also noted that in a relatively short timeframe, Americans are seeing Democrats’ adverse impacts on the economy. Banks then pointed out the “spike in the cost of living” and delayed job growth.
The Importance of Fiscal Responsibility
Banks called for the Republican Party to “reclaim the mantle of fiscal responsibility” and show voters the right vision of “conservative governance.” Then, the congressman thanked Rep. Kevin Hern and the other members of the RSC Budget and Spending Task Force for heading this charge.
Representative Kevin Hern from Oklahoma also laded the GOP budget as “floor-ready” and “a thorough plan” that is rooted in commonsense conservative reforms.
Rep. Hern then continued. According to the congressman, the GOP is “prepared to govern in the majority” and has a budget that demonstrates a readiness to govern to the American people.
“U.S. Capitol Building at Night 2” (CC BY-SA 2.0) by Kevin Burkett
The Current Congressional Power Balance
Both chambers of Congress are controlled by Democrats. This makes the RSC budget almost certain not to pass nor get a vote on the House floor.
Even presidential budgets like the one Biden declared earlier this year are primarily symbolic displays intended to show priorities rather than viable legislative proposals.
The #RSC budget and spending task force Runs on Dunkin 🏃@RepublicanStudy never stops working to advance fiscal responsibility and reign in deficit spending. pic.twitter.com/7vnoxxLLi0
— RSC (@RepublicanStudy) March 19, 2021
Moreover, the RSC budget also includes stipulations that don’t affect the budget at all. Included among them is opposition to packing the Supreme Court as well as a proposal to split the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals into two separate circuit courts. They also added support for COVID liability protections for businesses and opposition to overly burdensome occupational licensing.
Significant pro-life provisions are also included in the budget and a distinct line on the criminal justice front, expressing the RSC’s opposition to civil asset forfeiture abuse.
Needless to say, Democrats remain firmly opposed to this budget and are eager to ensure Republicans don’t get their way.
