House Democrats are hitting Republicans from all sides to force their GOP counterparts into a government funding agreement ahead of the Sept. 30 deadline, highlighting the possible consequences their proposed spending cuts or even a government shutdown would pose.
The latest plea comes from Democrats on the House China Select Committee, who warned GOP leaders that a government shutdown could harm the country’s ability to compete with the Chinese Communist Party by creating "needless uncertainty and instability at home and abroad,” according to a letter lawmakers sent to committee leaders on Wednesday. Instead, Democrats requested additional funding to compete with Chinese programs such as science and education.
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“We write to express our deep concern that the House Appropriations Committee is not adequately funding strategic initiatives that are essential to competing with and countering the CCP’s policies,” committee Democrats wrote in the four-page letter. “That is why we are deeply concerned to see that the House Appropriations Committee’s Fiscal Year (FY) 2024 appropriations bills cede scientific leadership, diplomatic influence, and innovative dominance to the CCP by cutting our strategic investments.”
The letter outlines five specific areas in which Republicans should prioritize government spending, all of which seek to counter Chinese growth in research and development by investing in U.S. programs. For example, Democrats are pressing Republicans to increase funding for the National Science Foundation as well as State and Foreign Operations initiatives in order to strengthen ties with other foreign allies and combat “malign CCP influence,” they wrote.
Democrats are also seeking ways to support advanced research on health and energy by increasing funds to organizations such as the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and the Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health. Additionally, the funding request would go toward making the U.S. more competitive in the technology sector as well as in space research and exploration.
“These investments are the first of many crucial steps to running faster in our strategic competition with the CCP. They will return short-, medium-, and long-term national security dividends. It is insufficient to solely fund our defense-related competition with the CCP,” the letter states. “We cannot compete with the CCP when we fail to fund critical sectors like science, diplomacy, research, education, and space.”
The letter comes one week before the House is set to return from its six-week recess and continue negotiations on the 12 appropriations bills that must be passed by both chambers and signed by President Joe Biden by Sept. 30 in order to avoid a government shutdown.
The House managed to pass just one of the 12 bills before leaving for recess, while other bills failed to make it to the floor for a vote, such as the agriculture bill. Others are still being finalized in committee.
Meanwhile, the Senate Appropriations Committee, which under new leadership has also committed to a bottoms-up appropriations process, has approved all 12 bills. However, lawmakers have not yet advanced the legislation to the floor for a vote.
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As the House and Senate work to advance their separate versions of the 12 appropriations bills, the two chambers are at odds over what top-line numbers to set spending at — placing the two chambers on a collision course as the deadline nears.
If Congress can’t pass all 12 of its bills before the end of the month, lawmakers will typically agree to a continuing resolution that allows the government to operate at the same spending levels until a new agreement is made. However, some hard-line conservatives are already ruling that process out, noting they aren’t afraid of enforcing a government shutdown to get the budget passed.