Key Vote Alert: Senate – “No” the Appropriations Minibus

Scott Parkinson  |   October 26, 2023

The Club for Growth urges all Senators to vote NO on the Appropriations Minibus. The results of this vote will be included in the Club for Growth Foundation’s 2023 congressional scorecard.

The Club for Growth opposes the Appropriations Minibus which includes the following three Fiscal Year 2024 appropriations bills:

  • Military Construction, Veterans Affairs, and Related Agencies
  • Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration and Related Agencies
  • Transportation, Housing, and Urban Development, and Related Agencies.

The passage of the so-called “Fiscal Responsibility Act” (FRA) earlier this year was another triumph of Big Government and the reckless, inflationary spending that far too many members remain addicted to. However, Senate negotiators have marked up these three appropriations bills at even higher levels of discretionary spending than the FRA provided through emergency spending designations. In addition to the $10.84 billion in additional cap-adjusted spending authority, the Senate Amendment would facilitate $36.811 billion in previously enacted so-called “emergency spending” designations that blow through the already insufficient spending controls provided by the FRA. This brings total budget authority facilitated by the minibus to $316.087 billion – $47.651 billion higher than what many conservatives were led to believe would be the true “cap” on spending in these divisions set by the FRA.

The hubris of Senate leaders is a slap in the face to Americans suffering from high inflation, record interest rates and a $1.7 trillion annual deficit in FY2023. It is imperative to rescind previously emergency-designated spending and return to pre-COVID spending discretionary spending levels absent gimmicks that fleece hardworking taxpayers. Club for Growth urges Senators to oppose this fiscally reckless legislation.

Club for Growth Foundation’s Congressional Scorecard for the 118th Congress provides a comprehensive rating of how well or how poorly each member of Congress supports pro-growth, free-market policies and will be distributed to the public.