Republican senators on the Finance Committee say they’re in agreement with President Trump about using the so-called policy baseline for their reconciliation bill, an accounting assumption that would let them ignore trillions in deficit additions over the next decade.
“From my standpoint, we agree on that,” Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wis.) told reporters last week. “Even the House, in terms of what we send back to them, I think they would accept that, as well.”
Sen. Steve Daines (R-Mont.), who was also at the meeting with Trump last week, reportedly affirmed Trump’s support of the controversial policy assumption as well, saying the president was on board with it.
Some Republicans in Congress have pushed back against the policy baseline assumption in favor of the standard current law framework, with some going so far as to describe the policy baseline as fraudulent.
“Both Smith and Arrington have expressed skepticism that such a move would be allowed under the Senate’s rules,” Beacon Policy Advisors wrote in a Monday analysis, regarding Ways and Means chair Jason Smith (R-Mo.) and Budget chair Jodey Arrington (R-Texas).
“A handful of fiscal conservatives in the House have expressed reservations about the current policy baseline, calling it a gimmick that obscures the deficit impact of the reconciliation bill,” they wrote.
— Tobias Burns
