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Top budget officials from the Office of Management and Budget gathered with House conservatives on Monday evening for a private session to advocate for a straightforward continuing resolution, multiple attendees confirmed. This comes ahead of President Donald Trump’s scheduled Wednesday meeting with the House Freedom Caucus and their allies.
Despite the House Freedom Caucus’s traditional stance favoring government shutdowns, OMB officials Russ Vought and Dan Bishop presented compelling arguments for a clean CR as the optimal path forward, according to sources present at the meeting. The urgency of their pitch is heightened by the looming March 14 funding deadline.
A week ago House Republicans passed the Budget that President Trump supports because it unlocks his FULL agenda.
Now, the Senate must move quickly to pass it because @realDonaldTrump's entire America First Agenda depends on it. There’s no time to waste. pic.twitter.com/wFCgPthGdN
— Steve Scalise (@SteveScalise) March 4, 2025
The timing is particularly significant as House Republicans seek to capitalize on recent victories, including new border funding allocations, aggressive spending reductions proposed by the DOGE, and strategic budget planning endorsed by Trump.
During the session, Russ Vought outlined several key advantages of avoiding a shutdown. He emphasized how an unexpected government closure could derail the momentum achieved under the Trump administration. The clean CR approach, he suggested, would also prevent the need to engage with Democrats on a comprehensive spending package laden with additional expenses.
Thomas Massie is a hard NO on the Republican budget proposal that INCREASES the deficit.
Thank God we have at least one voice of reason in the House. pic.twitter.com/oNYjdKmaAA
— Anna Matson (@AnnaRMatson) February 25, 2025
The presentation resonated well with the audience, despite their reputation as fiscal hawks and spending critics. Sources described the atmosphere as both cordial and positive, with several key Republican figures who previously stood at the center of party spending disputes expressing optimism about the proposed strategy.
Sources revealed that Vought stressed the importance of maintaining government operations to continue “DOGE-ing” effectively. Rather than risking disruption to Trump’s policy agenda and DOGE initiatives through a shutdown, participants were urged to back a clean CR to effectively implement the MAGA mandate that secured a decisive victory in November’s election.
The Republican leadership in the House remains focused on building upon their recent achievements, including secured border funding, DOGE-proposed spending reductions, and Trump’s comprehensive budget framework.
