Gaetz trying to ‘force discipline’ on federal budgeting process

(NewsNation) — With the federal government lurching toward a shutdown, Republican congressman Matt Gaetz says his refusal to support a funding plan is about a fight to change the budgeting process.

Gaetz, a Florida Republican, is among the lawmakers blocking votes on a federal budget plan that threatens a shutdown if legislation isn’t passed this week. Gaetz says that while he’s no proponent of a shutdown, the way budgets are done has to change, and the only way to achieve that is to “force discipline” on the process.

“We need single subject spending bills, we need to negotiate those in a bipartisan way in divided government in order to get them into law, but that will ensure that we have at least a fair paradigm in which to put downward pressure on spending,” Gaetz said Monday on “CUOMO.”

House Republicans face a Saturday deadline to pass a spending plan. Speaker Kevin McCarthy has thus far been rebuffed by a bloc of conservatives in his party who want Congress to stop passing short-term spending bills, known as continuing resolutions, that often force lawmakers to swallow huge funding bills before the end-of-year holidays.

McCarthy has also been unable to find enough support for passing a standalone Pentagon spending bill, which failed to advance twice last week.

Gaetz faulted McCarthy for making “multiple contradictory promises” over the budget, leading to “confusion.”

He suggested a viable path this week would be to put four bills on the floor to fund Defense, Homeland Security, Agriculture and State and Foreign Operations, accounting for nearly three-quarters of the discretionary budget.

“I don’t like the fact that there might be a shutdown over the weekend or for a few days as we try to get the rest of the work completed, but I think that’s what it’s going to take,” Gaetz said.

The Hill contributed to this report.