Washington — Rep. Jim Jordan of Ohio, the chairman of the influential Republican Study Committee, tells National Review Online that House conservatives still hope to cut $61 billion this fiscal year, but as bipartisan talks progress, and new numbers are bandied about, they remain committed to the policy riders attached to H.R. 1.
“We think that [$61 billion] is the number,” Jordan says. “Now, there is also good policy in there. So the question is, if we can get good policy, do you have to get to $61 billion? There is some debate there. But we’ll have to look at the package.”
If House Speaker John Boehner makes a deal with Senate Democrats and President Obama to cut less than $61 billion, Jordan predicts that all eyes will turn toward the policy riders.
At this point, Jordan is not willing to say how he would vote on a short-term spending bill that cuts less than $61 billion. “It would totally depend on the policy included,” he says. “That means not having taxpayer dollars used to take the lives of unborn kids, that could mean winning something on this year’s funding and implementation of Obamacare, or winning on the [Environmental Protection Agency]. That’s where the RSC is, and that’s where I think the conference is at. It’s sort of like the old balance.”