Throughout the debt ceiling process, House Republicans have been at the mercy of the Tea Party flank of their caucus. Their latest gripe? The Boehner bill includes a funding increase for Pell Grant scholarships that help low-income students afford to go to college.
The Hill reports:
Legislation crafted by House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) to raise the debt limit by $900 billion would directly appropriate $9 billion for Pell Grants in 2012 and another $8 billion in 2013.
This has shocked some conservative House freshmen who say they were elected to cut spending, not increase it. Some House Republicans think of it as being akin to welfare.
“I really don’t understand why we’re increasing spending in a bill supposed to be cutting spending,” said Rep. Andy Harris, a freshman Republican from Maryland. “It was negotiated without the input of a lot of members.”
Read the full story here.