01/13/2025 --axios
House Democrats are warning Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) that tying federal wildfire relief for California to the debt limit could set a new precedent that would come back to bite Republicans.Why it matters: Disaster prone red states like Florida and Louisiana — Johnson's home state — could face a similar squeeze from Democrats if they retake the House, lawmakers told Axios."This place is like high school, it's tit for tat when one side breaks a norm. The other side is happy to return the favor," said Rep. Jared Moskowitz (D-Fla.), pointing to the removal of members from committees as an example.If Johnson conditions the aid, Moskowitz said, "California's our largest delegation. You think they're going to forget about that?"Driving the news: Johnson told reporters Monday that, "I think that there should probably be conditions on that aid. That's my personal view.""We'll see what the consensus is. I haven't had a chance to socialize that with any of the members over the weekend, because we've all been very busy. But it will be part of the discussion for sure," he said.It's not clear yet whether the idea has full support among Republicans, with centrist Rep. Mike Lawler (R-N.Y.) telling Axios "that process will play itself out.""We want to provide relief to Americans who were impacted by natural disasters of any kind," he said, but California's "disastrous policy decisions ... will be part of a discussion."What they're saying: "I just think it's a really bad precedent, and, yeah, I do think it could have slingshot effects," Rep. Ami Bera (D-Calif.) told Axios in a brief interview at the Capitol."Whether it's wildfires in CA, or hurricanes and tornadoes in Louisiana, we should should never condition aid to disaster victims," Rep. Robert Garcia (D-Calif.) told Axios, also warning that the move would set a "really dangerous precedent."House Democratic Caucus Chair Pete Aguilar (D-Calif.) said conditioning aid would be "crazy and ridiculous" and would "completely upend Congress."Between the lines: Lawmakers in both parties told Axios that Johnson's gambit is a clear acknowledgement that both disaster aid and the debt ceiling will require Democratic votes to pass.Republicans have floated including a debt ceiling increase in the massive party-line fiscal bill they're planning, but that risks touching off a right-wing revolt."It's not the issue of conditioning, it's the issue of how do we get it done," said Rep. Mario Diaz-Balart (R-Fla.), a top House Appropriations Committee member who acknowledged both measures will "probably" need bipartisan support.Zoom in: Rep. Brad Sherman (D-Calif.), whose district has been directly hit by the wildfires, said it would "obviously be outrageous and unthinkable for Republicans to react differently to a disaster based upon how people voted."Sherman said he is "not for" conditioning future aid to red states on a partisan objective — offering an immigration reform package as an example.But "if Democrats tied Louisiana relief to making sure Social Security stayed solvent, that's a bipartisan objective," he said.The idea of conditioning aid may also lack universal GOP support, with Rep. Young Kim (R-Calif.) telling Axios in a statement: "If aid is needed, we need to deliver."The bottom line: "People have lost their lives, homes, and livelihoods," said Rep. Sydney Kamlager-Dove (D-Calif.), whose district has also been impacted by the wildfires."I have zero tolerance for partisan bullsh*t right now."