GOP braces for first ‘test run' on codifying DOGE cuts

The Hill

7 hours ago

Congressional Republicans are gearing up for a major test of how easily they can lock in cuts sought by President Trump's Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE).
Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) said he aims to have the House act swiftly on approving Trump's request for more than $9 billion in cuts to foreign aid and public broadcasting funding. That package is expected to hit the floor this week.
'We haven't done anything like this in a while, so this is probably, in some ways, a test run,' House Appropriations Chair Tom Cole (R-Okla.) told reporters.
Trump last week sent Congress a request for $8.3 billion in cuts to the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and foreign aid, and more than $1 billion in cuts to the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB), which provides some funding to NPR and PBS.
The request kickstarts a process that would allow Republicans to claw back funds for a list of programs on the administration's chopping block with just a simple majority in both chambers. That means Republicans wouldn't require Democratic votes in the Senate if they can stay mostly unified in greenlighting what's known as a recissions package.
But it's been decades since Congress has approved such a request to yank back funds previously greenlit by lawmakers. Trump tried to use the same process to rescind funds in his first term but was unsuccessful, despite Republicans controlling the House, Senate and White House at the time.
Republicans are bullish that this time will be different, however.
'[Trump's] done this before, and they've got a great team, I think, in place,' Cole said. 'They've thought about these things a lot in the time in between his first and his second term.'
'They just seem to me to be much more sure-footed, and there's no question, the president has much more influence inside the Republican Party than he had during his first term,' Cole added.
Still, some Republicans have expressed concerns about parts of the request.
Senate Appropriations Committee Chair Susan Collins (R-Maine) voiced opposition last week to cutting the President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR), saying Wednesday that the idea makes 'no sense' to her 'whatsoever.'
'Given the extraordinary record of PEPFAR in saving lives, it has literally saved millions of lives, and so I do not see a basis for cutting it,' she said.
And not all Republicans are thrilled by the proposed cuts to public broadcasting in the plan, which calls for rescinding $535 million in both fiscal 2026 and 2027.
'You go to rural America, public television is how you get emergency broadcasting and all that kind of stuff,' Rep. Mike Simpson (R-Idaho), a spending cardinal, said Thursday. 'I look at Idaho Public Television, they're a great organization, and we don't see the politics that some states do in them, or at least they believe they see that and stuff.'
However, Simpson said he still intends to support the overall package. 'I don't think in the long run, the rescissions are going to hurt them, because we're talking about the advanced appropriations and stuff like that.'
'What they're concerned about is, and should be, is the next year's appropriation process and stuff,' he continued.
On its website, DOGE estimates that it's racked up $180 billion in savings as of June 3 through a combination of efforts like asset sales, contract and cancellations and renegotiations, 'fraud and improper payment deletion, grant cancellations' and workforce reductions.
And White House budget chief Russell Vought signaled further special requests to lock in more DOGE cuts could be on the way when pressed on the matter during a budget hearing this week, particularly as the administration's ongoing efforts to shrink the government have been tangled up in courts.
But he also said it's 'very important' for this first package of cuts to pass, adding, 'If it does, it'll be worth the effort and we'll send up additional packages.'
'We are very anxious to see the reception from a vote standpoint in the House and the Senate,' Vought said, though he added, 'I'm less concerned about the House as I am in the Senate.'
Some Republicans see the package introduced this week as potentially the easiest one to deal with, as many in the party have been critical of foreign aid and funds going to outlets like PBS and NPR, which they've accused of political bias.
In a statement promoting the package on X, House Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-La.) on Friday touted the president's request as cutting '$9.4 BILLION in wasteful spending' while holding 'bureaucrats accountable to the American people.'
The package would target dollars for items like migration and refugee assistance that the administration says supports activities that 'could be more fairly shared with non-U.S. Government donors,' USAID efforts they say have been used to 'fund radical gender and climate projects,' and development assistance they argued 'conflict with American values' and 'interfere with the sovereignty of other countries,' among other rescissions.
Funding would also be eliminated for United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF), UN Development Program and the UN Population Fund under the proposal, as well as the World Health Organization, and 'portions of the UN Regular Budget for the UN Human Rights Council and the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East.'
Democrats, meanwhile, have come out in strong opposition to the plan, accusing Trump of seeking political retribution and undermining foreign assistance efforts.
They've also signaled trouble down the line when it comes time for both sides to negotiate a funding deal for fiscal year 2026 – when Democratic support will likely be necessary to keep the government open in early fall.
'It's going to make it very difficult for us to do bipartisan bills if we believe that he's just going to send rescissions over for whatever they want or don't want in a bipartisan agreement,' Sen. Patty Murray (Wash.), top Democrat on the Senate Appropriations Committee, told The Hill this week. 'They need Democratic votes.'
There's been some GOP frustration over the administration's handling of the annual funding work as well, as lawmakers on both sides have pressed the White House for more information about its budget plans in recent weeks.
'If we're getting to the point where we are right now, where we have a [funding stopgap], where we don't really have spend plans that are meaningful, now we have the administration transferring to the Congress their desires with rescission,' Sen. Lisa Murkowski (Alaska), a senior appropriator, said. 'I don't want to be a committee that no longer has a purpose. The role that we play is significant.'