appropriation

That shutdown, however, was only partial; Congress had passed five of 12 appropriations bills to keep parts of the government open.

From then on, presidents had to request rescissions from Congress—essentially asking permission to withhold funds after they had been included in an appropriations bill.

The current proposals from the House and Senate appropriations committees both would cut less than that, but still represent different visions for the agency this year.

The White House can, in theory, slash funding and staffing deeper than it could earlier in the year, when spending was governed by baseline appropriation amounts.

“The appropriations process has to be less bipartisan,” he said.