Utah senator coaches GOP aides on strategy for streamlining Trump’s agenda through Congress
Sen. Mike Lee of Utah is convening training for Republican congressional staffers aimed at preparing them to smoothly steer segments of key parts of President-elect Donald Trump's agenda next year through Congress – specifically by mastering a crucial procedural tool known as budget reconciliation.
Republicans are expected to use budget reconciliation to pass much of Trump's tax and economic policies because it is not subject to the legislative filibuster and its 60-vote threshold. This means Republicans will be able to move it along with their Senate majority alone.
On Nov. 18, Lee hosted the first of several trainings with the Economic Policy Innovation Center (EPIC) that featured presenters such as EPIC's Director of Budget Policy Matthew Dickerson, Executive Vice President Brittany Madni and President and CEO Paul Winfree.
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A GOP senate aide told Fox News Digital that the trainings for staffers are meant to familiarize them with the budget reconciliation process, which they noted can be complicated.
In order for provisions to be included in reconciliation, they must meet the Senate rules governing the process. In order to be done through reconciliation, policies must be budgetary in nature, usually having to do with spending or the debt limit, for example.
In the past, Republicans have criticized their Democratic counterparts for stretching the interpretation of what can be included in reconciliation in order to pass their policies without 60 votes. However, the GOP has also signaled that they may look to find a way to include other conservative policies in the procedure now that they will have control of Congress.
The GOP will have a 53-seat majority in the Senate in 2025 and 2026. They will be able to pass some policies through the reconciliation process, namely an extension to expiring parts of Trump's signature Tax Cuts and Jobs Act from 2017.
However, if Republicans are unable to fit other policy priorities into the budget reconciliation because they don't meet the requirements for inclusion, they will need to attempt to get some Democrats on board in order to beat the legislative filibuster for normal bills.
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The first training was attended by 116 Republican congressional staffers representing more than 70 offices on Capitol Hill, per the Senate Republican Steering Committee. There will be additional events with different groups co-hosting as well.
The aide explained that Lee and the committee wanted to make sure staff were prepared to take on reconciliation and pass Trump's policies as fast as possible.
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This effort by Lee and the committee is also to make sure that the resulting budget reconciliation process represents a wide swath of congressional Republicans and not just leadership. By equipping staff with the knowledge and understanding they need about it, priorities of Republicans across the board can be considered and their input acknowledged.