Last week, both chambers of Congress passed, and the president signed into law, another continuing resolution to temporarily fund the government and avoid a partial government shutdown. While this is not where I hoped lawmakers would be at this point in the appropriations process, Congress’s annual process to fund government functions and agencies, it has unfortunately been significantly drawn out this past year because of compounding delays.
A continuing resolution (CR), a tool to keep the government open and functioning at current spending levels and policies for a temporary period, is certainly not anyone’s first choice to fund the government. However, this CR was a responsible step forward to ensure Congress finishes the appropriations process and avoids a possible government shutdown as we continue to work with the Senate to complete regular appropriations bills. We cannot forgo finishing the appropriations process to address the current and evolving needs of our nation.
House Republicans are making a greater effort to spend responsibly and avoid oversized “packages” instead of individual bills. This allows lawmakers to make necessary policy changes and adjust spending levels, and it also allows Congress to avoid a rushed, massive trillion-dollar spending bill. We must address the evolving challenges and changing needs both in the Fourth District of Oklahoma and the entire nation.
Just like at a train station, late train after late train creates a ripple effect, causing more and more delays for the rest of the day. The first late train occurred when President Joe Biden submitted his budget request more than a month after the statutory deadline. This caused a delay in lawmakers’ ability to review his request, then hold hearings and markups to craft our own bills. Next, Democrats’ binge spending spree over the last two years created artificial expectations on spending and created inflationary effects that has discouraged the American people in this process. Recent runaway inflation has reduced the value of the dollar dramatically, creating more holes in the budget. Unfortunately, weeks apart this fall without a Speaker also contributed. Having said all that, the House did pass eight appropriations bills on time last year while Leader Schumer and the Senate passed none before the end of the fiscal year.
While the House and Senate work toward finishing the job, there are two paths our country does not want to take in the interim: a government shutdown at any point for any length of time or surrendering to a yearlong continuing resolution. A government shutdown only negatively affects the economy and critical functions, such as border patrol, military readiness and aviation and air control functions. It is not a viable negotiation tactic, and I do not believe in putting the livelihoods of Americans at stake. In turn, a yearlong CR would not allow Congress to make policy changes to address changing needs such as the need for a stronger national defense, enhancing protection at the southern border and reeling back spending in bloated areas. A yearlong CR would be a failure in Congress’s and the president’s duty to govern.
Lawmakers have a responsibility to the American people to pass individual funding bills that include commonsense policy changes to reflect the current needs of our country. The process and negotiations will continue to move forward, and I am hopeful the Senate and President will work with us to have everything wrapped up as soon as possible.
