Wednesday, prior to Congress approving a new “continuing resolution” that will fund the federal government through the end of 2016, U.S. Rep. Steve King (R-Iowa) and a group of conservatives offered an alternative spending bill.
This “substitute conservative Continuing Resolution” would have set the discretionary budgetary level at $1.04 trillion. It also would have “defunded” 14 of President Obama’s unconstitutional major policies and programs:
- President Obama’s amnesty programs for illegal aliens; specifically: DACA, DAPA, and the Morton memos
- Obamacare
- The president’s attempt to bring refugees into the U.S.
- Agency guidance dealing with transgender bathrooms in schools
- The Department of Labor’s “Overtime Rule”
- The EPA’s new Waters of the U.S. definition
- The Department of Labor’s “Fiduciary Rule”
- The “Clean Power Plan Rule”
- Federal funding to Planned Parenthood
- The president’s nuclear deal with Iran
- Any and all executive action that upholds policy products of the COP21 Conference agreement
- Executive enforcement of the Obergefell v. Hodges Supreme Court decision
- Dodd-Frank (in its entirety)
- The internet domain transfer
“It is the obligation of Congress to restore its Article I Constitutional authority by ultimately working toward balancing the budget, King said. “As a result of Congress failing to make any progress in that direction, I have introduced a substitute conservative CR that would set the discretionary budget at the $1.04 trillion level, fulfilling the promise Congress made to the American people in the Budget Control Act of 2011, and making a nearly $30 billion annual savings from the current level …
“Running through February 2017, this CR would defund wasteful and unconstitutional spending while supporting and defending Congress’s Constitutional authority. It is time Congress fulfilled the promises we all made to our constituents in 2014. Right now, the future of our nation and the future of the next generation hangs in the balance. Instead of kicking the can down the road by passing a clean CR, we are situated to actually fight to defund these items, fight for our budget, and fight for the American people.”
The bill was supported by the following representatives:
- Rep. Brian Babin (R-Texas)
- Rep. Mo Brooks (R-Ala.)
- Rep. Louie Gohmert (R-Texas)
- Rep. Paul Gosar (R-Az.)
- Rep. Andy Harris (R-Md.)
- Rep. Jody Hice (R-Ga.)
- Rep. Tim Huelskamp (R-Kan.)
- Rep. Doug LaMalfa (R-Calif.)
- Rep. Robert Pittenger (R-N.C.)
- Rep. Ted Yoho (R-Fla.)
