Retiring representative Jim Moran (D., Va.) says that Democrats got “virtually everything” they wanted in the cromnibus package that’s going to a vote in the House tonight, as he praised the bill in terms that could double as the conservative critique of the legislation.

Moran says that “the Republicans are indicating they need 80 Democrats” and he’s frustrated that Democrats won’t provide the votes.


“In 20 years of being on the appropriations [committee], I haven’t seen a better compromise in terms of Democratic priorities. Implementing the Affordable Care Act, there’s a lot more money for early-childhood development — the only priority that got cut was the EPA but we gave them more money than the administration asked for,” Moran told reporters Thursday evening after exiting a Democratic caucus meeting in which White House chief of staff Denis McDonough tried to convince members to back the bill.

“There were 26 riders that were extreme and would have devastated the Environmental Protection Agency in terms of the Clean Water and Clean Air Act administration; all of those were dropped,” Moran continued. ”There were only two that were kept and they wouldn’t have been implemented this fiscal year. So, we got virtually everything that the Democrats tried to get.”

Moran warned Democrats that if the cromnibus failed, Republicans would be able to run over Democrats next year when they control the House and Senate.



“What’s going to happen next year is that we’re going to lose all of the money that was put into Democratic priorities. Some of it will be shifted over to defense, but they’re not going to put in the money to implement the Affordable Care Act, they’re not going to put in the early childhood money, they’re going to put in all the anti-environment riders back and we’re going to have the same provisions that we’re arguing about,” he says.

House Democrats especially opposed two riders that change campaign-finance law and repeal a provision of the Dodd-Frank financial-reform law.