Will a discharge petition end the GOP majority?

Last week, a Fox News reporter caught Rep. Chip Roy (R-Texas) in a moment of candor declaring, “I honestly don’t know what to say to my fellow Republicans other than you’re going to eat a s*** sandwich, and you probably deserve to eat it.” For months, House Republicans have squabbled over discretionary spending cuts.

To be clear, we need to have an adult conversation about spending, deficits and debt. As a nation, the time for kicking the can down the road on our spending is over. It’s time for action. As demonstrated in recent weeks, there is not a general consensus among Republicans on where spending should be cut, and the goalposts continue to shift within the various sects of the Republican Party whenever there seems to be a hint of an agreement coming together.

The current breakdown in the GOP Conference means there is a real opportunity for break away Republicans to look to Democrats for solutions by way of a discharge petition, effectively ending Republican control of the House. The discharge petition would allow Democrats to bring a continuing resolution to the House floor for a vote that would temporarily fund the government while bypassing regular order.

Government funding is set to expire on Sept. 30, and the House has passed only one of 12 appropriations bills for fiscal year 2024. In an ideal world, Congress would create an annual budget on time and it would reduce the cost and size of the government. Sadly, the last time Congress passed all of the regular appropriations bills on time was in 1996 for FY 1997. The question must also be asked: why did GOP leadership wait until the last minute to bring the appropriations bills to the floor for a vote when the House Appropriations Committee reported 10 of the 12 regular appropriations bills for consideration more than 100 days ago?

The current display of dysfunction on Capitol Hill is a reason why millennials and Gen Zers identify as politically independent. The largest voting bloc in the 2024 elections longs for a Congress that can get things done without the political drama. And the irony is that the millennial voter will be the one to pick up the tab for both higher taxes and a lower standard of living as a result of this generation’s failure to address spending.

Republicans want to keep control of the House in 2024, but they should focus on not losing it before then. If a breakthrough is not made within the coming days, we know a handful of Republicans are looking to unite with Democrats on a resolution that does nothing to cut spending. This is a legitimate threat that fiscal conservatives must take seriously.

There is a real threat that a motion to vacate the Speaker’s chair will be filed, and should it be filed, there is a legitimate possibility the outcome could be Republicans forced to share governing authority with Democrats. House Democrats are playing the long game. They know that if they let Republicans fall into self-inflicted chaos, gaining control of the House in 2024 is that much easier.

Independent voters in the critical swing districts determine which party holds the majority every cycle. They want to see a serious effort to address our spending problem. As the economy softens, Republicans have an opportunity to show how trillion dollar deficits drive up inflation and interest rates, hitting independent suburban voters directly—making kitchen table economics more difficult. Connecting on this issue is the path for Republicans to hold the House in 2024. 

The immediate danger for the House GOP is to stop working as a conference, cultivating an “every man for himself” mindset. Democrats strategically want to see something like that take place so they can pick off Republicans one by one in swing districts.

Everyone in Washington knows that some Republicans are working with Democrats to secure a deal. The consequences of a deal could result in a power-sharing agreement between a handful of Republicans and the Democratic caucus for the remainder of the 118th Congress. Committees would be split evenly—forcing Republicans to relinquish their power, and an evenly controlled House would be a massive help to the Biden agenda.

Our nation’s financial situation is in bad shape. The national debt that we now face, more than $33 trillion, is irresponsible and unsustainable. If Congress cannot find solutions to basic discretionary spending cuts, there is no chance of tackling the true reforms in mandatory spending that must be addressed. By 2035, we will exceed $50 trillion in debt. Our interest payments alone will exceed $1.5 trillion, our market competitiveness will dissolve, and our standard of living will deteriorate.

Now that Congress is back, it is time for the GOP Conference to settle on a spending deal that includes real cuts, and take it to the negotiating table with President Biden and Senate Majority Leader Schumer (D-N.Y.). 

The GOP can show the American people, specifically the independent voter, they are serious about fixing our budget and averting an approaching sovereign debt crisis that would fundamentally reshape the American way of life. Good policy will make good politics ahead of 2024.

Adam Brandon is the president of FreedomWorks.