Congress faces narrow spending increase as VA health care costs balloon

Podcasts

Congress faces narrow spending increase as VA health care costs balloon

CQ Budget, Ep. 140

UNITED STATES - AUGUST 15: The U.S. flag waves in front of the U.S. Capitol dome on Thursday, Aug. 15, 2019. (Photo By Bill Clark/CQ Roll Call)

By Micaela Rodríguez, Jennifer Shutt and David Lerman

Posted January 21, 2020 at 4:14pm

There is no room for big increases in FY 2021 appropriations bills, even though veterans health care faces much higher costs. CQ Roll Call reporter Jennifer Shutt joins the podcast to explain where the spending bills are going to be squeezed.

Show notes:

Appropriators feel the squeeze of budget caps as veterans health funding grows

Recent Stories

Demcorat Denise Powell speaks during her primary election watch party in Omaha, Neb., on Tuesday. (Nikos Frazier/Omaha World-Herald via Getty Images)

Denise Powell wins Democratic primary for battleground Nebraska seat

Rep. Teresa Leger Fernández, D-N.M., seen here in February, chairs the Democratic Women’s Caucus.

Democratic and GOP women announce ‘partnership’ to address sexual misconduct

A sign outside of the National Gallery of Art says “Closed due to federal government shutdown” in Washington on Oct. 14, 2025.

Senators on path to forfeit paychecks during shutdowns

More members of Congress are retiring than usual this cycle, as some vent frustration about partisanship and seemingly endless redistricting. Above, a door on the Senate side of the Capitol exits toward the Supreme Court.

‘Screw this, I’m out’: Why members of Congress are retiring

A recent GOP-sponsored poll found Arizona Rep. Juan Ciscomani trailing his Democratic opponent. (Bill Clark/CQ Roll Call file photo)

What can we learn from House Republican polling?

Kevin Warsh, right, nominee for chairman of the Federal Reserve, talks with Chairman Tim Scott, R-S.C., after his Senate Banking Committee confirmation hearing in the Dirksen Senate Office Building on April 21.