Rep. Chuck Fleischmann voted for and Rep. Scott DesJarlais against an omnibus spending bill that passed the United States House of Representatives. It funds the federal government for 2014.
Rep. Fleischmann said, "This bill will take government shutdowns off the table for the remainder of the fiscal year and will provide some fiscal certainty for our weak economic recovery.
“For too long Congress has jumped from crisis to crisis and that is neither good for the economy nor the American people. The bill, which passed the House today with bipartisan support, provides zero new funding for Obamacare, protects all current pro-life policies, and provides real fiscal oversight. This bill was a compromise and is not perfect, but it is a step in the right direction and holds the line on spending priorities.
“In addition, this bill takes a critical step forward for the Chickamauga lock. In October, the House passed the Water Resources Reform and Development Act, and this bill takes another step toward fixing the Inland Waterways Trust Fund, which has long been ignored as the root cause of the lock’s funding problem. The appropriations bill that passed today puts into law a more effective distribution model for the Inland Waterways Trust Fund and is a large step toward ensuring funding for Chickamauga.”
Rep. DesJarlais said, “I am deeply disappointed this legislation locks in Washington’s irresponsible spending for yet another year and eliminates real cuts, funds ObamaCare and expands numerous wasteful government programs. Washington must work together to achieve a balanced budget, unfortunately today’s bill once again puts off addressing the drivers of our debt.
“I am thankful however this legislation removes the irresponsible cuts to military retirees included in the Ryan-Murray budget, which I voted against. Recently I introduced a plan to restore these benefits in the event this problem could not be reconciled.”