McCarthy vows end to massive ‘omnibus’ spending bills: ‘Not going to happen’

close

Video

Biden, Speaker McCarthy meet for first time in weeks for St. Patrick’s Day lunch

Senior congressional correspondent Chad Pergram reports on President Biden and House Speaker Kevin McCarthy reuniting for St. Patrick’s Day to celebrate their shared Irish heritage. 

House Speaker Kevin McCarthy said Tuesday that the House is done passing giant "omnibus" spending bills under GOP leadership, and that Republicans would be returning to the traditional way of working – passing individual spending bills that give Congress a chance to manage the government as they are considered in committee.

"One thing you gotta know on principle too: we’re not taking up an omnibus," McCarthy, R-Calif., told reporters at a Florida press conference on the last day of a Republican retreat. "It’s not going to happen. We gotta get back to doing the work that the American people expect us to do."

Republicans exploded in anger over last year’s passage of a $1.7 trillion spending bill for the rest of fiscal year 2023, which was introduced by Democrat leaders in the final days of the last Congress. That "omnibus" bill cobbled together all 12 annual spending bills into a single, 4,155-page bill that Democrats in the House and Senate rushed to pass just days before Republicans were set to take control of the House.

HOUSE GOP LEADER MCCARTHY BLASTS OMNIBUS AFTER IT PASSES: ‘FOREVER STAIN THIS CONGRESS’

House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, left, says the days of passing huge omnibus spending bills to be signed by President Biden are over. (Photo by ANDREW CABALLERO-REYNOLDS/AFP via Getty Images)

Several GOP lawmakers bristled over their inability to have any time to read it or amend it, and complained that under rules set by then-House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., lawmakers were allowed to vote remotely for the bill without having to show up on the House floor.

Republicans have since said that the bloated spending bill was one of several approved by Democrats and signed by President Biden that have required trillions in new federal borrowing and juiced demand in the economy that has elevated inflation.

Lawmakers like Rep. Chip Roy, R-Texas, accused Democrats of "destroying the United States of America" by casually spending "money we don’t have."

HOUSE DEM DUMPS ON DEMOCRAT SENATE FOR FORCING RUSHED VOTE ON $1.7T SPENDING BILL: 'UNACCEPTABLE'

Rep. Chip Roy, R-Texas, and other Republicans were outraged at the quick passage of the $1.7 trillion omnibus bill late last year, and argued Democrats were spending money the government does not have. (Photo by Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)

"Everything the American people is watching right now is a complete sham," Roy said after the late December vote. "It’s a fraud, a fraud being perpetrated on the American people right before their eyes, right as we head into Christmas."

Roy and others also criticized the 18 Republican senators who allowed it to pass by voting for the mammoth bill in the Senate.

Republicans took control of the House just days later vowing to make sure Congress manages the federal government by passing spending bills that are deliberated in committee. A House rules package approved by Republicans says spending bills cannot be considered if they increase mandatory spending over a 5- or 10-year period, and that offsetting spending cuts must be found to cover new spending.

Those same rules also require all House committees to identify federal programs that still receive funding even though their congressional authorization has lapsed and eliminate a shortcut that made it easier for Democrats to raise the federal debt ceiling without a direct vote.

HOUSE QUICKLY APPROVES $1.7T SPENDING BILL, FLEES DC FOR CHRISTMAS BREAK

Republican demands on spending are setting up a conflict with President Biden later this year. (The Image Direct for Fox News Digital)

On Tuesday, McCarthy discussed an even more powerful tool to rein in spending – requiring a more methodical approach to federal spending bills that requires consideration in committee and by both the House and Senate. Under the GOP majority, committees are likely to hold spending steady or cut spending, and that could give Republicans leverage over the Senate, where the narrow 51-49 majority will make it difficult for senators to find any broad agreement on spending.

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

"I believe in the process," McCarthy said Tuesday. "I think we’ve got to get back to the foundation, the way Congress and the Senate was designed. They have ideas, they pass something, we pass something, we go to conference and work it out."