Republican congressional leadership has its work cut out for it this week as members return to Washington, working toward a shared budget resolution between the Senate and House of Representatives.
Back in February, the House of Representatives succeeded in passing its own budget resolution.
In that legislative showdown, Speaker of the House Mike Johnson, R-La., was able to wrangle every Republican member of the House except for one to vote for the budget plan, which is a necessary first step in enacting a budget reconciliation.
Reconciliation is a process exempt from the 60-vote threshold required to end debate in the Senate. Through reconciliation, Congress decides which areas should get more money, and which should get less based on their priorities.
Now, Johnson must get the Senate on board with the budget resolution or at least persuade it not to amend the plan to a point where it can’t be passed with the Republicans’ razor-thin majority in the House.
Johnson and House GOP leadership in a statement Monday urged their counterparts in the Senate to approve the budget resolution.
“We took the first step … by passing a budget resolution weeks ago, and we look forward to the Senate joining us in this commitment to ensure we enact President [Donald] Trump’s full agenda as quickly as possible,” the statement reads.
“The American people gave us a mandate, and we must act on it.”
It’s sure to be a busy week. Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., and Johnson are set to meet with committee leaders Tuesday to hammer out differences on the budget resolution.