GOOD MORNING from the House budget hearing on the president's budget, featuring Russell Vought, the acting OMB director.
Reminder: both Pelosi and McConnell have said they want approps bills written to the levels in the budget deal, so this proposal is....not happening.
Reminder: both Pelosi and McConnell have said they want approps bills written to the levels in the budget deal, so this proposal is....not happening.
Yarmuth notes that this is Vought's first Hill appearance since Trump's impeachment. While they are not going to "rehash that entire proceess," he wants Vought to speak to OMB's "adherence to the ICA." Refresher on that here > nytimes.com/2020/01/16/us/…
Womack laments that "We can't even manage to come up with something as simple as a doggone budget."
Vought has just offered his opening statement. First time he's appeared since he defied subpoena during the impeachment inquiry, so will be interesting to see what kind of questions he gets.
House Republicans are using majority of their time in this hearing to focus on Democrats' failure to produce a full budget proposal. As @ericawerner pointed out, Republicans didn't put one forward in 2018 >>
@ericawerner Khanna is now raising concerns that an agency head testified before HASC that OMB told him not to talk about the budget. Vought says they're referring to an agency preference that OMB gets the first budget testimony.
@ericawerner Vought says testimony about the budget from agency heads is "a vital aspect of the process."
Pls hold while my computer takes this incredibly inopportune moment to update.
Vought says that the president does want to have an infrastructure plan, but not w/ the expectation that tax cuts get rolled backed.
! A question from Price about limitations on Puerto Rico/VI funding and why so much of it has been slowwalked.
“We are apportioning everything that HUD needs to be able to move forward with CDBG funding.” Vought says. “We don’t want the money to go to waste.”
Chip Roy has accused his Democratic colleagues of "pontificating," "demagoguing," and "bloviating" about the budget and federal spending.
Barbara Lee: "I don't hate the president, but I hate his policies." She later adds "it's hard to imagine how anyone could be proud of this budget."
Rep. Burchett just declared that he would refrain being the "crusty old white dude from either side of the aisle" who complains and instead would just ask questions.
Crenshaw says that "This body engages in nothing but moral shaming."
He goes on to say the budget committee has to be the "adult in the Congress" and "make the appropriators decide what to do with the money we give them." (I suspect members of the Appropriations Committee would have a much different thought about this.)
DeLauro says the committee has been subjected to an "Orwellian presentation that showcases doublespeak."
as others have noted, but warrants repeating: In more than 2 1/2 hours here, there have been no questions about impeachment or withheld Ukraine funds for Vought, who ignored a subpoena during the inquiry.
Womack thanks Vought for coming despite "serving as a piñata for my friends on the other side of the aisle."
Schakowsky and Vought now going back and forth about what kind of cuts the administration intended in its budget. Schakowsky determines that they do not agree on numbers.
Yarmuth points out that McConnell has also indicated that there will likely not be a budget resolution in the Senate.
Vought says that Graham-Cassidy was not included in the budget proposal because "the president is working on his own plan that we’re not yet ready to reveal."
nytimes.com/2020/02/10/ups…
nytimes.com/2020/02/10/ups…
A question about the withheld funds! (Kind of.) Yarmuth asks what steps OMB will take to avoid violating the ICA. Vought says he believes the agency has been transparent.
This House Budget hearing has concluded, but there were no questions about Ukraine and one relatively moderate question about OMB's withholding of appropriated funds.
After the hearing, @ericawerner @caitlinzemma and I asked Vought if he planned to delay congressionally appropriated funds for Ukraine.
"I don’t anticipate anything on that front," he said repeatedly.
"I don’t anticipate anything on that front," he said repeatedly.
@ericawerner @caitlinzemma "There are no plans currently to manage the people’s money in any way other than trying to make sure it’s economical and efficient," he said when I asked if he planned to use his apportionment ability in the same way as FY20.
@ericawerner @caitlinzemma When @ericawerner asked if concerns about corruption in Ukraine and how it might be managed had been addressed, he said: "No, I’m not going to take any tools that the president has off the table, but I don’t anticipate anything on that front."
