‘A Victory For Our National Security’

The Budget Deal Is ‘A Victory For Our National Security,’ ‘A Victory For Our Military,’ ‘A Victory For Our Veterans,’ And ‘A Victory For American Families’

SENATE MAJORITY LEADER MITCH McCONNELL (R-KY): “Considering the circumstances of divided government, this is a good deal. … It’s a good deal because it achieves the number-one goal on the Republican side of the aisle: Providing for the common defense. Continuing our progress in rebuilding the armed forces of the United States and modernizing them so they can continue to keep Americans safe and project power for years to come. This has been a top shared priority for this Republican Senate and this Republican White House for two and a half years.  Pentagon leaders need stable, reliable, and sufficient resources. The greatest military on Earth should not drift in uncertainty. Our servicemembers deserve better than a string of funding crises and continuing resolutions. Our commanders need predictable resources and sufficient resources to lay the foundations for the future of our national defense. Servicemembers deserve to deploy armed with state-of-the-art training and cutting-edge equipment. Their families deserve the best support services the nation can offer. And the nation as a whole deserves a global presence that is up to snuff and competitive with the leaps forward in which our adversaries have invested heavily.” (Sen. McConnell, Remarks, 7/25/2019)

ARMED SERVICES COMMITTEE CHAIRMAN SEN. JIM INHOFE (R-OK): “I was glad to see the administration reach a budget deal with Congress that prioritizes defense. I commend President Trump for doing what is best for our military, our veterans and American families – and now, I call on my colleagues to support this deal as well. … It’s a victory for our national security, it’s a victory for our military, and it’s a victory for our veterans. It’s also a victory for American families, who will sleep easier under the protection of a well-funded, world-class military. … That’s why a vote for this legislation means standing with our men and women in uniform – the best in the world. It means standing with our veterans – who served this country with bravery and honor, and who deserve the benefits they’ve been promised. It means fulfilling our promises to the American taxpayers and supporting our president. Most simply, it’s the right thing to do.” (Sen. Inhofe, Op-Ed, “Sen. Jim Inhofe: Budget Deal Is Good For Defense AND Conservative Values,” Fox News, 7/26/2019)

COMMERCE COMMITTEE CHAIRMAN SEN. ROGER WICKER (R-MS): “The budget outline the President announced today is a responsible step that assures steady and adequate funding for our national security over the next two years …This plan avoids the possibility of a government shutdown or a continuing resolution that would introduce uncertainty into every part of our government. This compromise agreement allows for Congress to pursue a responsible appropriations process between now and the end of the fiscal year.” (Sen. Roger Wicker, Press Release, 7/22/2019)

RULES COMMITTEE CHAIRMAN SEN. ROY BLUNT (R-MO): “This agreement will allow Congress to move forward with an appropriations process where we’re able to look closely at every program we’re funding, eliminate programs that aren’t needed or aren’t working, and set priorities that will have the most benefit for the most people. … It’s a big achievement for President Trump and his administration and it will increase certainty, transparency, and accountability as we move forward.” (Sen. Roy Blunt, Press Release, 7/23/2019)

‘Dozens’ Of Far-Left Democratic Policy Riders Are Banned From The Budget Deal

SEN. McCONNELL: “I commend the president’s team for firmly holding the line on the laundry list of left-wing policy riders that some House Democrats had sought to push throughout their partisan appropriations process. We’re talking about far-left wish list items. Things like reversing the Trump Administration’s decision and getting Title X taxpayer dollars flowing back into the pockets of Planned Parenthood. Weakening the conscience rights of health care professionals. Removing protections for the Second Amendment. And efforts that would have weakened ICE and de-funded the president’s efforts to secure our border. These are just some of the policy riders the far-left had hoped to smuggle into the appropriations process – perhaps using the full faith and credit of the United States as leverage. But the administration froze all of them out.” (Sen. McConnell, Remarks, 7/25/2019)

“Dozens of House Democratic attempts to roll back Trump administration policies will get tossed out of spending bills after congressional leaders agreed in their two-year, $2.7 trillion budget deal with the White House that they would avoid ‘poison pills.’” (“Democrats Lose A Weapon Against Trump In Ban On 'Poison Pills,'” Politico, 7/26/2019)

• “Democrats wanted to overturn a block on federal funding for abortion, limit Trump’s border security push and bar the administration from stripping out references to climate change in federal documents, among other things. But a handshake agreement wrapping in House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and GOP leaders will only permit bipartisan policy riders in fiscal 2020 spending bills. Republican leaders are championing the concession as a major win that provides critical protection for conservative priorities.” (“Democrats Lose A Weapon Against Trump In Ban On 'Poison Pills,'” Politico, 7/26/2019)

SEN. JOHN CORNYN (R-TX): “We know [Democrats] wanted to use policy riders, nearly 30 of them and counting, to try to implement elements of the Green New Deal to undo the President's regulatory reforms or to rewrite our immigration laws through the back door.” (“Democrats Lose A Weapon Against Trump In Ban On 'Poison Pills,'” Politico, 7/26/2019)

Pro-Life Groups Celebrate The Budget Deal’s Protections For Unborn Children From The ‘Abortion Extremism Roiling The Democratic Party’

SEN. McCONNELL: “What’s more, the administration successfully kept left-wing poison pills and policy riders far away from this agreement. We know that some on the far left had been hankering to claw back Hyde Amendment protections, or cut away at reprogramming authorities and flexibility that presidents rightly possess. I applaud the fact that no left-wing riders like that were allowed into the deal.” (Sen. McConnell, Remarks, 7/23/2019)

NATIONAL RIGHT TO LIFE: “National Right to Life praises President Donald Trump and Republican congressional leadership for a bipartisan two-year budget and debt-ceiling deal that protects all pro-life riders such as the Hyde Amendment. We thank House Republican Leader Kevin McCarthy and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell for all of their hard work in protecting the most vulnerable among us. President Trump and Republican congressional leaders have ensured that pro-life policies remain in place for the protection of women and their unborn children.” (National Right to Life, Press Release, 7/23/2019)

SUSAN B. ANTHONY LIST: “This budget agreement ensures that longstanding pro-life policy riders such as the Hyde Amendment along with every single one of President Trump’s pro-life executive actions are protected, effectively ending relentless efforts by House Democrats to repeal them in the budget process … Most notably, this agreement ensures that the Protect Life Rule goes into effect, stopping the funneling of Title X tax dollars to abortion businesses like Planned Parenthood. If accepted by the full Congress, it will be up to House and Senate Appropriators to hold Speaker Pelosi and Democrats to their end of the bargain by stripping out all anti-life poison pills. Given the abortion extremism roiling the Democratic Party and the calls to repeal the Hyde Amendment by leading Democrats – from the liberal Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez to the alleged moderate Joe Biden – vigilance will be needed. We thank President Trump, Leader McCarthy, Leader McConnell, and Senator Daines for prioritizing the protection of pro-life policies in budget negotiations.” (SBA List, Press Release, 7/23/2019)