Highlights: The White House on Monday issued veto threats against two GOP-led House appropriations bills expected to come up for a vote this week as lawmakers seek to avoid a government shutdown in November.
The House bills would cut Department of Transportation funding by $7 billion compared to fiscal 2023 levels, $1.2 billion from HUD funding compared to 2023 levels, and nearly $4 billion from EPA funding compared to 2023 levels.
In both cases, the White House argued the bills put forward by Republicans in the House undercut an agreement reached by administration officials and GOP lawmakers in May on spending as part of negotiations to raise the debt limit.
That’s cute that they think any of them care about that, and that half of them won’t call it an outright lie because their base will believe it.
The important thing is the GQP doesn’t have the votes in either chamber to overcome a veto. And passing legislation that they know will be veto’d is the same as doing nothing.
It’s worse than nothing since they’re wasting time and resources.
But that’s the point.
A veto on an appropriation bill puts the shutdown directly on Biden though.