House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) said in an interview published on Monday that legislation to reauthorize the Export-Import Bank will “probably” come to the House some time after the bank’s charter lapses on Friday.
{mosads}McCarthy, who opposes the bank’s reauthorization, noted in an interview with The Wall Street Journal that the Senate had a “semi-test vote” earlier this month, when the bank received “overwhelming support.”
“I think what will probably happen at the end of the day, the Senate looks like they have votes. It’ll probably come to the House,” McCarthy said. He did not predict whether it would be reauthorized.
Most observers expect supporters of the bank to attempt to attach a reauthorization amendment to another legislative vehicle, such as a transportation funding bill, in July.
McCarthy has been caught in the middle of what’s become a divisive political wedge issue for Republicans in Congress. Members are split between the Bank’s Tea Party opponents, who argue the bank picks winners and losers in financing select deals, and the business community, which maintains the bank helps sustain jobs.
“I voted for Ex-Im last time, mainly because it was short term, and there were going to be reforms. I’ve not seen the reforms,” McCarthy told the Journal. “They tell me Ex-Im is profitable. If it’s profitable, then why doesn’t somebody else fill the void?”
He said that “the leadership of Ex-Im would have been smart to realize they had a problem.”
“They would have solved their problem early,” he added. “It’s better to solve your own problems than to think that you’re going to let the House and Senate solve your problem for you… I do not believe something’s going to happen by June 30.