11 Reactions From Conservatives Unhappy With the Massive Government Spending Bill

Rachel del Guidice / March 23, 2018

Conservative lawmakers are disgruntled and outraged by the $1.3 trillion omnibus spending bill passed by Congress.

The Senate passed the massive package, 65-32, early Friday, following the House’s 256-167 vote Thursday.

Government funding was set to run out at 12:01 a.m. Saturday, and President Donald Trump unexpectedly threatened to veto the spending bill, which fails to significantly fund Trump’s promised border wall while continuing to fund Planned Parenthood, the nation’s largest abortion provider.

I am considering a VETO of the Omnibus Spending Bill based on the fact that the 800,000 plus DACA recipients have been totally abandoned by the Democrats (not even mentioned in Bill) and the BORDER WALL, which is desperately needed for our National Defense, is not fully funded.

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) March 23, 2018

But shortly after 1 p.m., Trump announced at the White House that he had signed the spending bill, calling the massive, last-minute package “ridiculous” but asserting that his highest duty as president is to “keep America safe.”

Here are 11 earlier posts on Twitter and Facebook that reflect conservative lawmakers’ state of mind.

1. Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., who vigorously fought the omnibus, said he stands in agreement with Trump that the president should veto the spending bill.

I agree @realDonaldTrump should veto this sad excuse for legislation because it’s $1.3 trillion in spending that (almost) no one read. https://t.co/8aOSAOIESY

— Rand Paul (@RandPaul) March 23, 2018

2. Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, voiced his displeasure on Facebook.

“Six times over the past six months, congressional leadership has chosen to fund our $4 trillion government by last-minute, take-it-or-leave-it spending bills with no time for debate or amendments allowed,” Lee said. “This is no way to run a government, but unfortunately has become ‘business as usual’ here in Washington.”

A small group of congressional leaders have negotiated a 2,232 page, $1.3 trillion bill to fund the government completely behind closed doors, giving Congress less than 48 hours to review it. I will absolutely be voting no. https://t.co/HwBbfl3J87

— Mike Lee (@SenMikeLee) March 22, 2018

3. Sen. James Lankford, R-Okla., said the omnibus bill illustrates Congress’ “spending illness.”

Tonight’s #omnibus bill is another symptom of Washington’s spending illness; massive overspending in a 2,200 page bill released only hours before the vote. I could not support this massive bill nor the broken budget process that brought us this bill. https://t.co/boQqRBzPKF

— Sen. James Lankford (@SenatorLankford) March 23, 2018

“This is no way to govern,” the Oklahoma senator said on Facebook. “I complained about this when Democrats were in control of Washington—it’s still wrong when Republicans control Washington.”

4. Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, called the spending bill “disastrous.”

See my full statement announcing my intention to vote against the disastrous omnibus spending bill here —> https://t.co/j369TXex7o pic.twitter.com/okprJQD9Qc

— Senator Ted Cruz (@SenTedCruz) March 22, 2018

5. Rep. Mark Meadows, R-N.C., chairman of the House Freedom Caucus, also urged Trump to veto the bill.

The @freedomcaucus would fully support you in this move, Mr. President. Let's pass a short term CR while you negotiate a better deal for the forgotten men and women of America. https://t.co/Dj05V8hevl

— Mark Meadows (@MarkMeadows) March 23, 2018

The House Freedom Caucus, a group of the chamber’s most conservative members, came out in official opposition to the spending bill Wednesday.

The @freedomcaucus officially opposes the omnibus. Statement attached. pic.twitter.com/qU526aA6W5

— House Freedom Caucus (@freedomcaucus) March 22, 2018

6. Rep. Mia Love, R-Utah, said she voted no because the spending bill “flies in the face of Utah’s principles of responsible governance.”

https://twitter.com/RepMiaLove/status/976893669923065856

7. Rep. Dave Brat, R-Va., said one major reason he voted no was the lack of funding for Trump’s border wall.

https://twitter.com/RepDaveBrat/status/977182383983288326

8. Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Fla., told Fox News Channel that “we shouldn’t have to bankrupt the country our troops are fighting for.”

"The Republicans failed to deliver on our promises to defund planned parenthood, defund sanctuary cities and build a wall. Supporters of this legislation will point to increase military spending, but we shouldn't have to bankrupt the country our troops are fighting for" pic.twitter.com/E55McENByT

— Rep. Matt Gaetz (@RepMattGaetz) March 23, 2018

9. Rep. Andy Harris, R-Md., said Congress didn’t have enough time to read the bill, which leadership released Wednesday night.

Forcing a vote on a 2,232 page bill 14 hours after releasing the text was absolutely unreasonable. Congress needs to do its job and put together a real spending bill. https://t.co/SQr5pZAF9u

— Rep. Andy Harris, MD (@RepAndyHarrisMD) March 23, 2018

10. Rep. Ted Budd, R-N.C., said he wants more money for the promised wall along the U.S.-Mexico border.

.@realDonaldTrump I stand with you, Mr. President. Veto this #omnibus and let's fund the wall and get a better deal for the American people.

— Senator Ted Budd (@SenTedBuddNC) March 23, 2018

11. Rep. Ron DeSantis, R-Fla., said more members should have been involved in writing the spending bill.

Stuffing more than $1.3 trillion in spending and a number of unrelated policy issues into a single, mammoth bill and ramming it through without any time for scrutiny shows that Congress has hit rock bottom.

— Ron DeSantis (@GovRonDeSantis) March 22, 2018

Ths report was updated to reflect the president’s signing of the spending bill.