House Republicans are utilizing three crucial government funding bills to advance conservative priorities on abortion, diversity, and drag performances. The House is expected to debate appropriations bills this week that would fund the Department of Defense (DOD), Department of Homeland Security (DHS), and the State Department and foreign operations for fiscal year 2025. This is part of an ambitious schedule set forth by House GOP leaders to have all 12 individual appropriations bills passed before the August recess. In addition to funding the government by the end of the fiscal year on September 30, Republicans are also aiming to push some conservative social policies through before the November election, when they could potentially lose the House majority.
House Republicans are advocating for former President Trump’s border wall, with $600 million designated in the DHS appropriations bill for its construction, as well as a policy provision to mandate Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas to swiftly put up physical barriers along the U.S.-Mexico border. The DHS and defense bills also block their respective funds from being used for abortion services. The defense bill specifically prohibits the use of federal dollars for abortion or abortion-related services for servicemembers or their dependents, while also preventing funding for transgender health care-related measures for ICE detainees. Furthermore, the defense spending bill restricts funding for programs like drag queen story hours and bars the hiring of drag performers as military recruiters, citing potential discredit upon the military.
All three bills up for consideration this week prohibit federal dollars from being allocated towards diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) programs. The defense and DHS bills also impose limitations on the enactment of critical race theory (CRT) programs within those departments. Despite modest increases in spending for defense and DHS in fiscal year 2025, House Republicans are looking to slash spending at the State Department. Guided by last year’s Fiscal Responsibility Act, which was a deal struck between then-Speaker Kevin McCarthy and President Biden to raise the debt ceiling and restrict federal spending, GOP leaders are working towards a discretionary government funding topline of approximately $1.6 trillion. Unlike last year, when final numbers were inflated by side deals, House Appropriations Chair Tom Cole and Speaker Mike Johnson have pledged to focus solely on the topline number this year.
The House Rules Committee is scheduled to review all three bills on Tuesday, the final step before they are voted on by the full chamber. Democrats have already expressed opposition to the plans put forth by House Republicans. President Biden has threatened to veto all three spending bills, criticizing them for including numerous partisan policy provisions that would result in deep cuts to various essential services and posing threats to reproductive health care, LGBTQI+ individuals, marriage equality, climate change initiatives, and diversity, equity, and inclusion efforts. Despite GOP efforts to move forward with these bills, there is clear opposition from Democrats as well as concerns raised by the White House regarding the potential impact of these policies on critical issues.
