WASHINGTON—The Senate Republican Conference announced on Feb. 11 that it will draft legislation to fund $325 billion worth of government spending in support of border security and military expansion.
Senate Budget Committee Chairman Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) said his committee will begin drafting a budget resolution that authorizes two bills.
“[We] will come up with a $150 billion plan to increase spending to make our military stronger and more lethal. We'll come up with a $175 billion plan to secure the border,” Graham said.
“The other committees will be instructed by the Budget Committee to find offsets,” he added, signaling that other areas of government spending will face cuts to pay for the new spending. He did not provide details on what would be funded, although he mentioned a “border wall.”
The buzzword of “reconciliation” has dominated Congress for weeks. It refers to the process of budget reconciliation, whereby Congress can pass fiscal policy bills without requiring the support of 60 senators, whose body has a cloture requirement of 60 votes to end debate, avert a filibuster, and pass a bill. The measures that Republicans seek to enact are highly partisan and unlikely to secure any Democratic support.
The provisions in a reconciliation bill can affect taxation, spending, and public borrowing only for a period of up to 10 years. No policy measures, such as reforms to immigration statutes, may be included. The process requires the Senate and House of Representatives to first concurrently pass a “budget resolution” that orders reconciliation, after which a bill may be drafted. The bill, then, must be passed by both chambers.
Disagreements between the Senate and House have delayed the process thus far. Senate Republicans seek to propose and pass two reconciliation bills for fiscal year 2025, which ends on Sept. 30. House Republicans, by contrast, say that only one bill can realistically be passed by their body—given their one seat majority and the likelihood of no Democratic support.
If Graham and Senate Republicans proceed with their plan, they will remain at an impasse with the House. Addressing the disagreement, Graham said the action on two bills was motivated by the need to complete President Donald Trump’s mass removal operation of illegal immigrants in the United States.
“Nothing would please me more than one big, beautiful bill,” said Graham, quoting statements previously made by Trump. “Tom Homan said, ‘I am begging you for money ... the activity on the northern border is at an alarming rate.’”
Graham also said that the money would be used to find 300,000 illegal immigrant children whose whereabouts are unknown to the Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR), an organization within the Department of Health and Human Services that cares for unaccompanied minors.
“We’re not building a wall, folks, we’re hitting a wall. They need the money, and they need it now,” Graham said.
The House Budget Committee did not immediately respond to a request for comment on this subject.
The committee is scheduled to hold its first hearing on the budget resolution.on Feb. 12.
