The Tea Party advocacy group FreedomWorks is reportedly warning Republicans conservatives will not support a debt limit increase without any spending cuts attached to a bill to fund the government.
According to Politico, an eight-page internal FreedomWorks memo written by the group's vice president of legislative affairs, Jason Pye, challenges Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin's strategy for a "clean" debt limit increase to ease passage in Congress.
"I don't think Secretary Mnuchin understands the politics of the situation or how Congress really works," Pye told Politico.
Pye sent the memo to House offices and the White House on Wednesday to lay out FreedomWorks' position on the upcoming debt ceiling talks next month. Conservatives want spending cuts, policy riders or some type of regulatory reform attached to any bill raising the debt ceiling by Sept. 29, when the Treasury Department is scheduled to run out of money to pay the government's bills.
And a "clean" debt limit increase will endanger endanger the White House's other priorities, he warned, Politico reported.
"This approach would further demoralize conservative grassroots activists after the failure of Obamacare repeal and the lack of significant legislative victories from a Republican-controlled Congress," Pye wrote, Politico reported. "This puts the White House's agenda in jeopardy at a time when conservative engagement and support are absolutely necessary to pass fundamental tax reform at the end of 2017."