Rep. Andy Harris Tells Newsmax: Senate Has Yet to Address Any of Our Funding Bills

Representative Andy Harris, a Republican from Maryland, stated in an interview with Newsmax on Tuesday that the upcoming partial government shutdown should be attributed more to the Senate than to the House.

“We have accomplished more in the House compared to the Senate,” Harris explained during his appearance on Newsmax’s “The Chris Salcedo Show.” “Out of the 12 bills, the Senate only passed three, while we passed seven. All of our bills have gone through the committee process, but we are facing opposition from Democrats who want to continue the spending policies of Senator Chuck Schumer and Representative Nancy Pelosi. Many House Republicans are saying no to this.”

Schumer, the Senate Majority Leader, and House Speaker Mike Johnson, a Republican from Louisiana, reached a tentative agreement on a $1.59 trillion discretionary spending bill for the current fiscal year that began on October 1. However, this bill is currently stalled due to demands from conservative House Republicans who are seeking deeper spending cuts and specific policy changes along with the budget allocations.

The federal government has faced the threat of a shutdown or partial shutdown three times in the past six months due to the failure of lawmakers to pass the 12 separate appropriations bills necessary to fund various government departments and agencies. Temporary spending measures called continuing resolutions have kept the government operational during these times.

In recent days, both Schumer and Johnson have been blaming each other for the current stalemate in Congress.

On Monday, Schumer stated to the press that “Democrats are doing everything possible to avoid a shutdown.”

President Joe Biden held a meeting on Tuesday with congressional leaders from both parties in an effort to jumpstart progress on the $1.59 trillion spending package and prevent a partial shutdown.

Reports indicate that funding for agencies overseeing agriculture and transportation is set to expire on Friday at midnight, while funding for other agencies such as the Pentagon and State Department will run out on March 8.

Harris reiterated to Newsmax that the Senate has been dragging its feet on the spending bills passed by the House and has not made significant progress.

“We have sent seven bills to the Senate, but they have not taken any action on them,” he said. “The bottom line is that the functioning of Congress is flawed, the Washington process is flawed, and there is excessive spending without the necessary resources. We are accumulating record debt and deficits, and we need to change the way things are done.”

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