Republicans call Schumer's bluff on cuts to PBS and foreign aid

The Senate is plowing ahead Wednesday evening on $9 billion in cuts to PBS, NPR and foreign aid, threats from Democrats be damned.Why it matters: Democratic leaders — and some high-level Republicans — say budget rescissions undermine the trust they need to pass the annual bipartisan spending deals.Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) has warned Republicans they'll be left to figure out a potential government shutdown on their own if they keep the partisan cuts coming.But GOP leaders insist they aren't worried.Between the lines: Democrats have a "valid concern" about making spending deals just to be undone through rescissions, Sen. Mike Rounds (R-S.D.) told reporters today."We've actually shared with folks from the administration that the bigger challenge for them is — appropriations take 60 votes," Rounds said.The other side: Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) told Axios he didn't think the appropriations would be any more difficult because of the rescissions package."I think we can have a bipartisan process," he said, pointing to the appropriations bills that have already been voted out of committee with Democratic support.He said the Senate could even start voting on appropriations bills or the National Defense Authorization Act as early as before the August recess."I think our first markup went well. The second one was mixed, but we've reported bills out of committee. I expect we're going to report more tomorrow," Senate Appropriations Chair Susan Collins (R-Maine) said on whether rescissions will complicate her job.The simple math: Government spending bills require 60 votes to advance in the Senate.But rescission packages — which cut specific spending from a budget — can be passed with a simple majority, as they're set to tonight."This is beyond a bait-and-switch — it is a bait and poison-to-kill," Schumer said earlier this month.The bottom line: Votes on rescission packages originating from the White House are rare.It hasn't been done successfully since 1999.

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