Senator Eric Schmitt

There's been a rapid fire process on the Senate floor at the end of the process called budget voterama, where any senator can bring up any amendment they want. We vote on them over and over and over again, often in rapid formation. And then whenever we're finished with it, we send it back to the House. And hopefully at that point, they're willing to pass it.

There's been a rapid fire process on the Senate floor at the end of the process called budget voterama, where any senator can bring up any amendment they want. We vote on them over and over and over again, often in rapid formation. And then whenever we're finished with it, we send it back to the House. And hopefully at that point, they're willing to pass it.

There's no way of telling exactly what it will look like, but as far as the first part of your question, what it takes to get me there, we just have to have a reasonable path to get back to pre-pandemic spending levels, somewhere at least in range. For fiscal year 2026, we ought to have a path to get to $6.5 trillion a year in total federal spending.

There's no way of telling exactly what it will look like, but as far as the first part of your question, what it takes to get me there, we just have to have a reasonable path to get back to pre-pandemic spending levels, somewhere at least in range. For fiscal year 2026, we ought to have a path to get to $6.5 trillion a year in total federal spending.

Now, if we can get there and then hold that for a couple or three years, we'll be getting to the place where we can balance. You can't do all of this through a reconciliation bill because it doesn't deal with every category of spending, but it does deal with a lot. And it deals with a lot of the spending that has resulted from increases just since the COVID pandemic.

Now, if we can get there and then hold that for a couple or three years, we'll be getting to the place where we can balance. You can't do all of this through a reconciliation bill because it doesn't deal with every category of spending, but it does deal with a lot. And it deals with a lot of the spending that has resulted from increases just since the COVID pandemic.

That's where I'm looking to get. There are a million different formulations of how that can take place, but it's got to be part of a plan. If this fits into a plan that is serious, that can get us to balance within a few years, I can get there. And I know most or all of my colleagues can as well.

That's where I'm looking to get. There are a million different formulations of how that can take place, but it's got to be part of a plan. If this fits into a plan that is serious, that can get us to balance within a few years, I can get there. And I know most or all of my colleagues can as well.

Well, I think we can get there on the Medicaid front. I've proposed legislation called the America First Act, some of which was incorporated into the House version, but they left a lot of our illegal alien population eligible to participate in Medicaid for reasons I don't understand, but there's still that. We could achieve additional savings there.

Well, I think we can get there on the Medicaid front. I've proposed legislation called the America First Act, some of which was incorporated into the House version, but they left a lot of our illegal alien population eligible to participate in Medicaid for reasons I don't understand, but there's still that. We could achieve additional savings there.

When we look at things like the so-called state Medicaid provider loophole, You've got states that are manipulating provisions of the Affordable Care Act, you know, Obamacare, in order to skim federal funds off the top of Medicaid, all in the name of Medicaid provider tax.

When we look at things like the so-called state Medicaid provider loophole, You've got states that are manipulating provisions of the Affordable Care Act, you know, Obamacare, in order to skim federal funds off the top of Medicaid, all in the name of Medicaid provider tax.

Congress needs to close that loophole because that's encouraging states to take more and more federal money, federal money that through the expanded Medicaid program is paid for nine to one by the U.S. government. We also need to look at the SALT deduction.

Congress needs to close that loophole because that's encouraging states to take more and more federal money, federal money that through the expanded Medicaid program is paid for nine to one by the U.S. government. We also need to look at the SALT deduction.

uh the income tax deduction that's just a huge taxpayer subsidy from all other americans over to blue state billionaires uh designed to bail out blue state governors uh this is um uh this is a problem i mean so rather than subsidizing 350 billion dollars for states with high tax rates and we ought to pass a big beautiful bill that fully terminates

uh the income tax deduction that's just a huge taxpayer subsidy from all other americans over to blue state billionaires uh designed to bail out blue state governors uh this is um uh this is a problem i mean so rather than subsidizing 350 billion dollars for states with high tax rates and we ought to pass a big beautiful bill that fully terminates

The Green News scam gets rid of a lot of these – every one of these Green News scam subsidies where we're subsidizing non-baseload sources of power that are unreliable.

The Green News scam gets rid of a lot of these – every one of these Green News scam subsidies where we're subsidizing non-baseload sources of power that are unreliable.

Okay, first of all, a lot of the Doge cuts, not all of them certainly, but a lot of them occur on what we call the discretionary side of spending. And discretionary spending isn't addressed through a reconciliation bill. So most of those would need to occur outside the reconciliation bill.

Okay, first of all, a lot of the Doge cuts, not all of them certainly, but a lot of them occur on what we call the discretionary side of spending. And discretionary spending isn't addressed through a reconciliation bill. So most of those would need to occur outside the reconciliation bill.