Logic dictates that the more Congress spends on a Kosovo-related defense funding bill during the next few weeks, the less appropriators will have to allocate to other programs later this year. But very little is logical about the way that Congress spends money.
The perverse reality is this: The more money that is included in the Kosovo spending bill, the more money Congress may have to spend on other programs in the 13 appropriations measures for fiscal 2000. Huh?
Perhaps a little explanation is in order. For months, congressional Republicans charged with crafting the annual spending bills have been searching for ways to stick to the tight spending caps called for in the 1997 five-year balanced-budget deal, while still providing big increases for defense and education programs. Now, they've found the political cover they need: War.
President Clinton has asked that his $6 billion request for the Kosovo mission be treated as "emergency" supplemental spending, which is not subject to the spending caps and does not have to be "offset" with painful cuts in other parts of the budget. And GOP lawmakers, including many conservatives, seem happy to comply. Not only that, Republicans are also eager to significantly increase the cost of the emergency bill in order to meet other defense needs worldwide. If Congress goes that route, appropriators may not have to worry about those pricey defense needs when they write the regular fiscal 2000 funding bills. That will free up lots of money for other programs. And for the first time in many years, no "fire walls" prevent Congress from using funding designated for defense for other purposes.
When asked in recent days about this scenario, budgetary experts on and off Capitol Hill agreed that it is, indeed, true. "Kosovo is the best thing that ever happened to them," said Stanley E. Collender, the managing director of the federal budget consulting group at Fleishman-Hillard Inc., who writes a weekly column that appears on GovExec.com. "It relieves a lot of pressure on the 2000 caps." House Appropriations Committee Staff Director James W. Dyer concurred that the Kosovo emergency bill will make life easier for the appropriators, saying, "It takes [away] some of the outlay pressure."
Congressional Democrats, for their part, still insist that the spending caps are so tight that even the slight pressure release that might result from the Kosovo bill would not help with passage of the fiscal 2000 appropriations measures. "You're $5 billion closer, but you're still $25 billion away," said a key House Democratic aide, contending that Congress will have to cut discretionary programs by some 10.2 percent to meet the caps.
The exact size of the defense supplemental spending bill remains unclear. Clinton has sent Congress a $6 billion request to fund the Kosovo mission through the end of the fiscal year, and many Democratic lawmakers have said that the bill should focus only on that narrow purpose. "We should ask one question: What do you need to pay for this operation?" said House Appropriations Committee ranking member David R. Obey, D-Wis. Likewise, Sen. Paul Wellstone, D-Minn., said that Congress should keep the Kosovo mission and other defense needs separate. "It's adding another agenda to the agenda that should be there," Wellstone said.
But congressional Republicans have other ideas. They see the Kosovo funding bill as a way to restock military resources that have been depleted in recent years. House Majority Leader Richard K. Armey, R-Texas, in a letter to his colleagues, contended: "As we consider funding for the Kosovar War, we cannot make the mistake of merely replacing bomb for bomb and missile for missile. We must take urgent steps to improve our military capabilities across the board."
House Speaker J. Dennis Hastert, R-Ill., presented a similar argument. He said that GOP leaders "will be working very closely with the appropriators to review the President's emergency funding request in light of our broader military needs, and we will encourage them to bring to the floor a bill which strengthens our defense structure when and where needed."
Republicans are mulling over the possibility of providing anywhere from $10 billion to $29 billion for the Kosovo measure-and they contend that Clinton administration officials know full well that the money they requested is inadequate. "The request ... is from the Office of Management and Budget," said House Appropriations Committee Chairman C.W. "Bill" Young, R-Fla. "It is not coming from the Department of Defense."
Young was among the Republicans who were quite willing this week to declare the Kosovo bill an emergency. He has bluntly refused to find other spending cuts to pay for the measure, saying, "I will do all that I can to prevent offsetting the defense part of the bill." Armey said that the defense funds may come from some $85 billion that was to be used to help pay down the federal debt.
Other lawmakers this week were more cautious. They voiced concerns about how big the defense supplemental bill may get and whether nondefense agenda items may be added to it since both parties consider it to be "must-pass" legislation. "If it starts down that road, then you won't need the [regular] appropriations bills because they'll all be added to the supplemental," complained one Senate Republican aide.
GOP leaders insist that they want to push the supplemental bill through quickly and without divisive battles over side issues. But such good intentions have often fallen by the wayside in the past. Democrats, in fact, have said they are concerned that Republicans may add items to the bill to try to bait Clinton into vetoing it. "I hope this bill doesn't get mired in the political disputes we've seen in other supplementals," said Rep. Steny H. Hoyer, D-Md.
And as the NATO bombs continue to drop on Kosovo, the rhetoric on Capitol Hill is escalating. "We must step up to the plate," Armey said. "We must fill the void left by this Administration." Obey had a different view. "It would be a criminal act for this Congress to politicize even this issue," he said. "If both sides can't play this one straight, then this place is beyond hope."
NEXT STORY: Y2K czar takes message to kids