Budget Ping-Pong: Why $1 Trillion in Cuts Still Hangs Over SNAP & Medicaid
Quick update
What happened?
It’s been a bit of a dull week and you may be wondering why after all of the drama in the House. Quick recap: last week, the House passed a bill (on party lines) to cut over $1 trillion from Medicaid, SNAP, and Medicare. The bill now heads over to the Senate. However, the Senate was on recess this week and thank God for that because it gave everyone a breather.
What’s next?
The Senate returns on Monday, June 2 (yes, it’s already June) and they will be going full force to draft their own budget bill, which they hope to pass out of the Senate by the July 4th holiday. This bill will be different from the House bill, so it will go back to the House and the House will make changes, send it back to the Senate, the Senate will make changes, etc etc.
It can’t ping pong forever (or can it???) as there are debt ceilings to raise, Farm Bills to get to, and every delay for this budget bill takes Republicans closer to mid-terms - an election they should overwhelmingly lose based on the backlash to the budget bill.
So get some rest this weekend because starting next week, we will pivot your regularly scheduled calls from the House to the Senate.
Three Things To Do
Never forget how House Republicans were ready to cut over a $1 trillion from basic needs programs for America’s poorest people.
If the Senate excludes a couple of cuts in their bill but keeps the remainder of the House’s cuts, that is not a win. Taking a mile leap backwards only to move forward a couple of steps is not a win.
Due to the chaotic nature of the summer ahead, I highly recommend that whatever summer plans you make or intend to make, stick to them. There are a ton of advocates in this space, we are working in collaboration, and we need you well-rested.