09.11.19

McConnell: No Time To Waste When It Comes To Appropriations

‘I maintain hope that Chairman Shelby and Ranking Member Leahy can oversee a smooth process and that we can move all 12 appropriations bills in a bipartisan fashion. Both sides have every reason to want a smooth appropriations process to proceed as planned. I hope that’s exactly what happens in committee this week and on the floor soon thereafter.’

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) delivered the following remarks on the Senate floor regarding the Senate’s agenda for the month of September:

“With only a few weeks to go until the end of September, we have no time to waste when it comes to appropriations. We have planned for the Senate to consider bipartisan bills from the Appropriations Committee as soon as next week and make significant headway before a partial, interim continuing resolution becomes necessary at the end of the month. To this end, Democrats and Republicans in both the House and the Senate, plus President Trump, formalized an agreement a month ago. It set up funding levels to inform the appropriations process. And everyone on both sides agreed there would be no poison pills. No partisan wrenches thrown into the gears.

“Unfortunately, yesterday brought some disturbing signals that Democrats may be rethinking that commitment. New poison pills are apparently being discussed. But everybody knows what we agreed to last month. In fact, back on August 1st, I asked consent to print the entire terms sheet that everybody agreed to in the Record. I maintain hope that Chairman Shelby and Ranking Member Leahy can oversee a smooth process and that we can move all 12 appropriations bills in a bipartisan fashion. Both sides have every reason to want a smooth appropriations process to proceed as planned. I hope that’s exactly what happens in committee this week and on the floor soon thereafter.”

Related Issues: Appropriations, Senate Democrats