Senator Ron Johnson of Wisconsin expressed on Sunday that he is confident he has garnered sufficient support among his Republican colleagues to obstruct the progress of the House’s expansive new bill, known as the “big, beautiful bill,” and to advocate for modifications to its content.
His comments highlight the challenging road that lies ahead for this significant domestic policy initiative, which recently secured a narrow victory in the House of Representatives.
House Speaker Mike Johnson has advised his Senate counterparts to refrain from excessive alterations to the bill, yet conservative fiscal legislators in the Senate have indicated their unwillingness to endorse the legislation as it currently stands.
“We have enough support to halt the process until the president prioritizes spending cuts and addressing the deficit,” Senator Johnson stated during an appearance on CNN’s ‘State of the Union.’
Senator Johnson, along with a group of fellow lawmakers, has voiced concerns that the proposed legislation could lead to a dramatic rise in federal deficits, a concern that Speaker Johnson has dismissed.
He emphasized that the main objective of the budget reconciliation process “should be to reduce the deficit; however, this bill actually exacerbates it.”
Johnson has consistently advocated for a return to spending levels seen before the pandemic.
Additionally, Senator Rand Paul of Kentucky described the spending reductions outlined in the House bill as “wimpy and anemic” during a separate interview on Sunday.
“Nonetheless, I would still support the bill, even with those inadequate cuts, if it weren’t going to significantly increase the national debt,” Paul remarked on “Finance Newso News Sunday.”
“The issue is that the numbers simply do not add up; they will lead to a soaring national debt,” he further elaborated.
A recent report from the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office indicated that the comprehensive package could lead to an increase in the deficit by approximately $3.8 trillion over the next ten years.
