Dem Sen. Coons: Omnibus Gives Us a Higher Spending Baseline to Work with ‘for the Next Two Years’

On Tuesday’s broadcast of MSNBC’s “Andrea Mitchell Reports,” Sen. Chris Coons (D-DE) stated that while the smaller increase in non-defense spending in the omnibus is difficult to take, getting the bill passed means, “for the next two years, we have a higher baseline that we’re working off of.”

Host Andrea Mitchell asked, “Now, this budget deal is unusual in one respect — another respect, I should say — because it increases defense spending by 10%. Non-defense spending is only increased by 5.5%. Usually, there’s parity. So, going forward, are you going to find it hard, as a Democrat, to object to Republican efforts to cut domestic spending?”

Coons responded, “Well, this was a tough pill to swallow. But, frankly, getting this $1.7 trillion omnibus appropriations bill done means that, for the next two years, we have a higher baseline that we’re working off of. This bill funds some of the most important pieces of legislation that President Biden has signed into law. I’ll give you two quick examples: The PACT Act, the biggest expansion of veterans’ benefits in American history, that’s funded through this law. The CHIPS and Science Act, which brings advanced manufacturing of semiconductor chips and cutting-edge science research investment back to the United States, this bill funds that law. There’s also a significant increase in investment in state and local law enforcement of 4.4 billion or a 12% increase. There [are] a number of President Biden’s priorities that are funded through this bill. And in the end, although we didn’t achieve parity with the defense increase, we also added $45 billion in assistance for the brave Ukrainians who are fighting against Russian occupiers. In the end, I thought this was the best deal we could get, an important deal for us to get over the finish line before we head home for the holidays.”

Follow Ian Hanchett on Twitter @IanHanchett