(The Center Square) – Accused of hiding something by Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries, Republican U.S. Rep. Virginia Foxx late Tuesday afternoon remained steadfast to call her committee into debate at 1 a.m. Wednesday.
One Big Beautiful Bill Act, as so authored from the Budget Committee led by Texas Republican Rep. Joedy Arrington, will be up for debate. A spokesman for Foxx, North Carolina’s longest tenured member of Congress, in an email to The Center Square said the timing of the floor vote would come from leadership.
“All your questions relating to the timing of the meeting will be covered at length in the chairwoman’s opening remarks for the committee,” wrote Alex Ives, the communications director of Foxx and the House Committee on Rules. “She’ll be offering a little history lesson that will set the record straight.
“On information relating to the timing of the vote – post debate – I would encourage you to watch for an announcement from leadership.”
The budget resolution’s spending and saving instructions will fund President Donald Trump’s tax, border, defense and energy agenda. The overall proposal, having run through 11 committees and resting at 1,116 pages, has driven a wedge in the Republican Party sharp enough to send the second-term Republican President Donald Trump onto Capitol Hill for closed door meetings.
Politicos forecast a vote watch on Republican Reps. Mike Lawler of New York and Thomas Massie of Kentucky. Republicans have the majority 220-213 with two vacancies following the deaths of Democratic Reps. Sylvester Turner of Texas on March 5 and Raul Grijalva of Arizona on March 13.
Ives’ email to The Center Square did not answer why at 1 a.m. rather than regular business hours; how immediate the bill could reach the floor for a vote; how many meetings this committee has held previously at 1 a.m.; or the unusual meeting time of the committee.
The nine Republicans on the committee are Foxx, Minnesota’s Michelle Fischbach, South Carolina’s Ralph Norman, Texas’ Chip Roy, Indiana’s Erin Houchin, New York’s Nicholas Langworthy, Virginia’s Morgan Griffith and Georgia’s Austin Scott and Brian Jack. The four Democrats are Massachusetts’ Jim McGovern, Pennsylvania’s Mary Gay Scanlon, Colorado’s Joe Neguse and New Mexico’s Terese Leger Fernandez.
McGovern joined Jeffries in penning a letter to Foxx asking for a reschedule “so that it may be debated in the light of day.” Fischbach has reposted Trump multiple times, including when he says the proposal “will kick millions of illegal aliens off of Medicaid,” and she wrote a thank you to the Commerce Committee “for keeping the language to stop federal funds from going to Planned Parenthood in the reconciliation bill. Taxpayer dollars should never be used to end life.”
