Daschle: GOP Cuts are Veto Bait

House Republican leaders delivered conflicting signals today on offsets in next week's supplemental spending bill, with Majority Leader Dick Armey, R-Texas, strongly defending the specific cuts and Majority Whip Tom DeLay, R-Texas, saying they could be changed if members do not like them. Added into the mix are comments by Senate Minority Leader Daschle, who told reporters the specific cuts called for in the $2.9 billion defense and disaster relief bill are veto bait for President Clinton.

The bill, passed by the House Appropriations Committee Tuesday, would cut $1.9 billion from federal housing programs, $335 million in contract authority from airport grants, $275 million in airport grant obligation limits and $250 million from the administration's national service program.

Democrats and some Republican moderates are not happy with the cuts, and in particular with the decision to exempt defense programs. Asked about the unrest among some GOP members, DeLay said: "We told them if they don't like the offsets, we can help them with some others they may like. We're open."

However, a key moderate, Rep. Christopher Shays, R-Conn., said he is skeptical of DeLay's flexibility. "I don't believe that," he said, adding that the national service cut comes in the middle of the fiscal year while at the same time Republicans are exempting defense from the cuts.

"They're basically saying you can't offset defense with defense," he said. "If they said I can come up with defense cuts, yeah, I'll come up with them."

But Shays said the moderates may not fight the supplemental. "I think a lot of them are going to cave," he said, adding, "They don't want to fight this battle."

Armey strongly defended the offsets, saying they should be "easily acceptable" because a large percentage of the cuts are from unobligated funds. Even though the national service plan remains one of the administration's major priorities, Armey said, "I expect the president will sign the bill," later adding, "I just can't believe the president ... is going to turn around and veto this bill."

However, in the Senate, where the disaster- defense bill is not offset, Daschle said the cuts would make the bill unacceptable. "It's likely it would be vetoed," he told reporters.