Sen. Bernie Moreno is pushing Republicans to prepare for a sweeping party-line legislative package in the event Democrats flip one or both chambers of Congress after the midterms.
The Ohio Republican made the remarks Thursday to reporters at the Capitol, invoking a striking biblical metaphor to describe the stakes involved.
“We will do a reconciliation bill — one way or the other we will,” Moreno told reporters, referring to the budget process that requires only a simple majority to pass.
“Obviously, if we lose control of Congress, it’ll be the Last Supper,” he said, signaling urgency around a potential lame-duck legislative push.
Moreno said any such bill would be “giant” and would include “all the Republican priorities that we can get done” before a new Congress is seated.
“If we lose the House and the Senate, we should be here from Nov. 9 until Dec. 31 with no break at all,” the senator said, underlining how seriously he views the post-election window.
“Like, we’ll have turkeys here for Thanksgiving,” Moreno added, suggesting lawmakers should forgo the holiday recess entirely to push through legislation.
The House previously approved a framework for a party-line bill covering war funding, farm aid, and election integrity incentives, but the effort has stalled in the Senate.
Among the priorities Moreno highlighted are funding the government for the next fiscal year, emergency defense spending, raising the debt ceiling, the National Defense Authorization Act, FISA Section 702, the farm bill, permitting reform, and confirming nominees.
Moreno also sounded the alarm over the prospect of a debt default, warning that it was something “nobody wants to see” and describing it as “1929 on steroids.”
Despite his warnings, Moreno expressed cautious optimism about Republican prospects, saying he believes it is “more likely” that the GOP will hold its Senate majority, currently at 53-47 with two independents caucusing with Democrats.
If Republicans do lose their Senate majority, Moreno would be positioned to lead the effort to win it back, as he is running unopposed so far for chair of the National Republican Senatorial Committee.
