Spotlight on budget’s odd couple

One is a bookish accountant and self-described introvert. The other is an unassuming orthopedic surgeon. Neither is generally recognized outside the Beltway.

But there’s a hot spotlight shining on the GOP’s new low-profile Budget chairmen: Sen. Mike Enzi of Wyoming and Rep. Tom Price of Georgia. And how well the two men can work together in the coming weeks may determine how successful Republicans will be in pushing forward their agenda and major policy changes in the 114th Congress.

{mosads}Neither the House nor Senate has passed a budget plan yet, but since January the two chairmen have been huddling with each other on a weekly basis, while their staffs have been in constant contact, aides say.

In the weeks before they rolled out their budget plans, Enzi and Price were aggressively reaching out to factions within the GOP, seeking to shore up support and stressing the advantages of Congress passing the first GOP budget in a decade.

If the House and Senate can muscle through separate resolutions this week — and eventually hammer out their differences in a joint budget — Republicans will be able to employ a rare budget tool to try to torpedo parts of 

ObamaCare, pass tax reform or even raise the debt ceiling.

The GOP blueprint will also set guidelines for appropriators as they draft spending bills later this year.

“They both have a common purpose,” said Sen. John Boozman (R-Ark.), an appropriator who previously served alongside Price in the House. “Both of them are looking toward a bigger goal.”

The House is expected to vote on the budget Wednesday, while the Senate will take up its resolution by Friday, before lawmakers leave town for a two-week Easter recess. Enzi and Price hope to resolve differences in their budgets by mid-April in a House-Senate conference committee.

While their blueprints have some key differences, many of their policy priorities are similar, and the pressure of striking a joint budget deal is helping them stay on the same page.

Both men are veterans of Capitol Hill, but they’ve never worked on legislation together — and they’re standing in the shadows of their predecessors.

Price is a conservative favorite with big shoes to fill; he succeeded Rep. Paul Ryan (R-Wis.), who now leads the powerful tax-writing Ways and Means Committee.

Price’s clout was tested in recent days as he worked to shepherd his budget through an intraparty battle between defense hawks and fiscal conservatives.

At last week’s markup, the House Budget panel abruptly recessed for the night because an amendment to boost Pentagon spending by $96 billion couldn’t win enough support from Republicans. A late-night push by Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) to twist arms failed.

Despite the dust-up, the GOP aides said Price’s relationship with leadership is “very strong.” Defense hawks eventually received assurances that their proposal would be added to the budget this week.

Part of Price’s success stems from his personal relationships when he served as chairman of the conservative Republican Study Committee (RSC), but also from his ability to build a diverse coalition.

Before rolling out his plan, Price held “dozens” of sessions with factions in the GOP conference. Among them were the RSC, the centrist Tuesday Group, the Republican Policy Committee and committee chairmen, including Ryan, whose Ways and Means Committee can play a vital role in producing reconciliation bills.

Price also huddled with House Armed Services Committee Chairman Mac Thornberry (R-Texas) and all the Republican members of his panel. And the Budget chairman spent an hour with the founders of the conservative Freedom Caucus, including influential Chairman Jim Jordan (R-Ohio), who is backing Price’s plan.

“I think his outreach has been important to illustrate the budget priorities and has gone a long way in trying to find the common ground necessary to move forward with the budget process,” said Rep. Frank Guinta (R-N.H.), who previously served with Price on the Budget panel.

“He’s doing a great job managing a complex document,” Guinta added.

Enzi has a reputation for keeping his head down — literally. The bespectacled accountant is often spotted strolling around the Capitol with his nose buried in his iPad or Kindle. A reporter once interrupted him while he was engrossed in Susan Cain’s Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can’t Stop Talking.

Does he consider himself an introvert? Sure, he replied.

Enzi, a former mayor and state lawmaker, is such a low-key presence, he attracted a primary challenge last year from former Vice President Cheney’s daughter, Liz Cheney. His initial response: “I thought we were friends.”

But Cheney’s family feud didn’t play well back in the Cowboy State, and she dropped out rather than face an embarrassing defeat.

Enzi’s no-drama demeanor also stands in stark contrast to that of his predecessor, Sen. Jeff Sessions (R-Ala.), who is known for his fiery speeches from the Senate floor.

“He’s much less passionate and much less a bomb-thrower,” said a Democratic aide who has closely observed both Enzi and Sessions on the Budget panel. “Enzi takes a very workman-like approach.”

The budget plans of Price and Enzi vary in major ways.

The House budget would balance in nine years by cutting $5.5 trillion, while the Senate budget would balance in 10 years by cutting $5.1 trillion.

And while the House budget would convert Medicare to a premium support system, the Senate budget would honor President Obama’s request to find $430 billion in Medicare savings.

The rest of the proposals are closely aligned.

Both stick to the sequestration budget caps that were set by a 2011 law; both are expected to seek about $96 billion in war funding; and both call for the repeal of ObamaCare.

The differences can be worked out at the conference stage, as long as the blueprints pass each chamber.

The Senate budget is not expected to face any trouble, but Price could have a tougher time.

Ryan’s budget last year passed narrowly in a 219-205 vote. This time around, Price’s budget can only lose up to 28 votes, assuming all Democrats vote against it.