Today, U.S. Senator John Cornyn (R-TX) spoke on the Senate floor to commend the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) and discuss how Congress can continue its efforts to curb excessive spending through a new legislative initiative. He highlighted three primary avenues: the One Big Beautiful Bill, a rescissions package, and the annual appropriations process.
Senator Cornyn stated, “I don’t see the work of DOGE being finished, but rather being the starting place.” He emphasized that recommendations from DOGE have been incorporated into a rescissions package designed to cut millions of dollars from international programs resembling those in the Green New Deal.
He elaborated on specific cuts proposed by this package: “The bill rescinds $6 million appropriated for net zero cities in Mexico, a half a million dollars for electric busses in Rwanda, and $2.1 million for climate resilience in Southeast Asia, Latin America, and East Africa.” Additional reductions include $4 million for Legume Systems Research and $3 million allocated to Iraqi Sesame Street.
Cornyn also addressed potential savings within what he called the “big, beautiful bill,” which aims at eliminating what he described as misnamed legislation like the Inflation Reduction Act. He further noted that controlling national debt could be approached through more strategic use of the appropriations process: “While we often think of the appropriations process as strictly a spending process, it does not have to be that way.”
In his remarks, Cornyn expressed hope that both chambers of Congress would utilize these opportunities to reduce deficit and debt levels. Despite concluding its formal task force activities, Cornyn affirmed that “the work of DOGE lives on.”
As a founding member of what he termed the DOGE caucus, Cornyn committed to continuing efforts with colleagues to manage federal spending better. He urged fellow lawmakers to support these initiatives by passing both the rescissions package and eventually endorsing broader legislative measures.
