On Thursday, the United States House of Representatives narrowly passed the first rescissions package, which will eliminate billions in unnecessary spending by the federal government. The package will now go to the Senate, where it requires only a simple majority to pass.
This first rescissions package is said to cut $9.4 billion in spending.
The House of Representatives passed President Donald Trump's $9.4 billion plan to claw back federal funds for foreign aid, PBS and NPR.
The 214 to 212 vote was mostly along party lines, with no Democrats voting for the bill. Four Republicans voted against the measure, however – Reps. Brian Fitzpatrick, R-Pa., Mike Turner, R-Ohio, Mark Amodei, R-Nev., and Nicole Malliotakis, R-N.Y.
A dramatic scene played out on the House floor on Thursday afternoon as the bill appeared poised to fail, with six Republican lawmakers having voted "no."
Fox News Digital observed Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., and Majority Whip Tom Emmer, R-Minn., huddled with several moderate Republicans who either voted "no" or had not yet voted.
Some of the cuts include:
Spending cuts in the legislation include a $8.3 billion rollback of funding to the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), and just over $1 billion in cuts to the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, which funnels federal dollars to NPR and PBS.
This is, as someone once said, a big freaking deal. Now, passage in the Senate is not assured; while only a simple majority is required, the GOP's Senate majority is slim indeed. And if the Senate makes changes to the package, a second, final House vote would be required before this heads to the president's desk.
Republicans have a lot riding on this, as does President Trump.
See Also: New: OMB Sends Rescission Package to Congress, Billions Cut
What's the Deal With the Reconciliation Bill, Codifying DOGE Cuts, and the Deficit?
This package should not be confused with the reconciliation bill; RedState's own Jennifer Van Laar, in a story last week, has explained that distinction:
The DOGE cuts are overwhelmingly discretionary spending, and therefore cannot be accomplished through a reconciliation bill. Instead, they'll be codified via a $9.4 billion rescissions package the White House sent to Congress on Tuesday. House Majority Leader Rep. Steve Scalise (R-LA) promised to bring that package to the House Floor next week.
And:
After the Big, Beautiful Bill and the rescissions package pass, Congress will turn its attention to the annual appropriations bill, which is where huge spending cuts can occur. And since the debt ceiling and a number of other contentious issues (like the tax cuts and funding for deportations and the border wall) will be off the table, it'll be harder for Senate Democrats to hold anything hostage, and more spending cuts can occur.
There are a lot of moving parts here, and we should note that a big part of President Trump's second-term agenda is tied to these two items - the rescissions package and the reconciliation bill. And there's a deadline; once the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) transmits a rescissions package to Congress, then Congress has a 45-day window to pass it, or it is considered rejected. So watch carefully, as Democrats will do anything and everything they can to throw sand in the gears.
One hurdle, at least, has been surmounted. Stay tuned; we will bring you updates as they develop.
DOGE is finding billions of dollars in wasteful spending, and the Democrats are losing their minds as they realize their gravy train and woke projects are coming to an end.
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