Sen. Jeff Sessions, R-Ala., is going up against one of his closest friends in the U.S. Senate for the plum post of Budget Committee chairman — a matchup that could determine, in part, the policy agenda as Republicans take control of the upper chamber next month.
Sessions, the ranking minority member of the Budget Committee, was seen as the natural successor to head the Senate panel.
However, the budget hawk — also a passionate opponent of amnesty for illegal immigrants — faces a challenge from Sen. Mike Enzi, R-Wyo. His friend is the more senior member, albeit by the luck of the draw.
Sessions, 67, and Enzi, 70, both were elected to the Senate in 1996. Because neither had been a member of the House of Representatives or a governor, they and other freshman senators lacking those credentials pulled names from a hat to determine seniority.
Enzi fared better than Sessions and so officially ranks higher than his Alabama colleague on the Budget Committee. Because of his seniority, Enzi has standing to challenge Sessions.
Two years ago, Enzi chose not to assert his seniority on the committee, allowing Sessions to become Republicans’ ranking member.
Now, however, the Wyoming Republican is using that seniority to make a play for the chairmanship.
Committee members will vote on a new chairman in a secret ballot next month.
Daniel Head, Enzi’s press secretary, declined comment and directed The Daily Signal to a prepared statement that the senator issued last month. It reads:
President Obama’s overreach on immigration is one example of abuse of power. I have always opposed amnesty and will continue to. Unfortunately, it’s not the only example. If we are going to replace Obamacare, reform our tax code and stop wasting money on programs that don’t work, the Senate Budget Committee and Senate Finance Committee are going to play a major role.
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Sessions’ office did not return multiple requests for comment from The Daily Signal.
The senators and their wives maintain close relationships, and both Republicans have remained relatively quiet about their contest for the chair.
Some reports argue Sessions’ outspoken opposition to President Obama’s ideas for immigration reform is part of the reason his future as Budget Committee chairman is in jeopardy.
Obama last month took executive action and announced that he would allow up to 5 million illegal immigrants to remain in the United States and apply for work permits without fear of deportation. The president said his plan was not “amnesty,” though many conservatives consider it that.
Sessions, who has opposed both legislative and executive amnesty for illegal immigrants, wasted no time in responding to Obama’s remarks. In a speech at The Heritage Foundation the next day, the Alabama Republican said the president’s move was an abuse of power that ultimately would hurt current citizens and those following the legal process to become citizens.
“It’s time for us to stand up for the American worker,” he said.
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Sessions has used his perch as the top Republican on the Budget Committee to “change the dynamics” of the debate over how to fix the immigration system.. He has explained the impact policies such as amnesty would have on everyday Americans, a former Republican Senate staffer told The Daily Signal.
“We’re not in a crisis of finding enough workers,” Sessions said in his speech at Heritage. “We’re in a crisis of a lack of jobs.”
That outspokenness, though, could stall his ascent.
Gaston Mooney, executive director of the Conservative Review, a center-right organization that scores and ranks GOP lawmakers, said Enzi’s attempt to beat Sessions and head the Budget Committee is a way for establishment Republicans to “punish” conservatives:
These latest efforts to punish conservatives are designed to undermine the influence of those who intend to stand up to executive amnesty and President Obama. The latest target, Sen. Sessions, has done a superb job serving as the ranking member of the Senate Budget Committee, and he has made it clear he plans to stop Obama’s executive amnesty. This illustrates the disconnect between establishment Republicans and the voters. Why bench your all-star for a walk on?
The former Senate staffer said the Budget Committee could become one of the most influential in the next Congress because the chairman — along with his counterpart on Finance — will be instrumental in setting the Senate’s policy agenda on fiscal issues.
Although Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, set to become majority leader next month, has not intervened in the race, the staffer said Enzi would be a boon to leadership. The former staffer said:
It’s in their best interest to have their troops on the board in all of the key stops. Having your own guy chairing the Budget Committee is really important to stopping headaches for leadership.
Since Sessions has advocated repealing Obamacare and pushed back on Democrats’ support for amnesty, a loss for the Alabama Republican could signal the GOP’s prevailing perspective in the Senate.
“It shows that if Sessions doesn’t get the Budget chairmanship, there’s less support for him and his agenda, whether it’s being fiscally responsible or on immigration,” the former staffer said.
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