Prize panel seat could be Coburn’s

One of the Senate’s most outspoken advocates for cutting federal spending will nab a seat on the powerful Finance Committee, which has jurisdiction over more than half the federal budget, according to Senate GOP sources.

Sen. Tom Coburn’s (R-Okla.) anticipated addition to the panel is another indicator that the GOP will look to make significant reforms to entitlement programs. Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid all fall within the jurisdiction of the Finance panel. 

{mosads}The expected appointment is also a major prize for Coburn, who has steadily raised his influence in the Senate Republican Conference over the past two years. 

Senate Republicans will meet Thursday to formally consider Coburn’s appointment. He has slightly more seniority than Sen. John Thune (R-S.D.), a possible 2012  presidential candidate who is also interested in sitting on the committee. 

A senior Republican member who sits on the powerful committee told The Hill Wednesday that Coburn would win one of the coveted Finance seats.

Another Senate GOP source said Coburn wants the post and will get it.

Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell’s (Ky.) office declined to comment on the issue. Meanwhile, Coburn said “it’s all speculation” until committee assignments are announced officially.

A seat on the Finance Committee would give Coburn a powerful complement to his oversight position on the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee.

Coburn, who was reelected in November, is serving his last term. He has vowed not to run for a third term. 

With the winds at the GOP’s back after the election, conservatives on Capitol Hill believe they have a major opportunity to scale back government programs to help rein in the federal deficit. 

Social Security accounted for 20 percent, or $708 billion of the federal budget in 2010, according to the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities (CBPP). Medicare, Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program totaled 21 percent, or $753 billion. Other safety-net programs such as the refundable portion of the earned-income and child tax credits make up about 14 percent, or $482 billion, according to the CBPP.

Coburn is in talks with Democratic and Republican colleagues to put together a package that would include several of the recommendations of President Obama’s fiscal commission, which attracted bipartisan support but fell short of the necessary votes. Among other cost-cutting measures, the panel called for raising the Social Security retirement age to 68 by the year 2050 and 69 by 2075.

Coburn sat on that panel and voted yes, as did Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-Ill.).

In recent years, Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus (D-Mont.) worked with ranking member Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) on a range of issues. This year, bipartisan accords on the panel could be tougher to come by, especially because Sen. Orrin Hatch (Utah) has replaced Grassley as the panel’s top Republican. Hatch has a history of working with Democrats, but could face a competitive primary against Rep. Jason Chaffetz (R-Utah) next year.

Meanwhile, the Senate Democratic Steering Committee recommended Sen. Ben Cardin (Md.) for the open Democratic seat on Finance. He will replace Sen. Blanche Lincoln (Ark.), who lost her race for reelection.

Cardin said he would use his post on Finance to focus on healthcare policy, noting he served as the chairman of the Ways and Means Committee in the Maryland State Legislature.

“It’s an area I’ve specialized in [during] my public service and I think serving on the Finance Committee gives me more opportunity,” Cardin said.

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) and McConnell agreed Wednesday to the new ratios of Democratic to Republican seats on the Senate’s committees, according to a senior Senate aide.

One some panels, Democrats will have a two-seat majority. On others Democrats will have only a one-seat advantage. Democrats have a 53-47 majority in the upper chamber.

A public announcement of the committee ratios is scheduled for Thursday.

Republicans have to replace retired Sen. Jim Bunning (R-Ky.) on the Finance panel and are expected to pick up at least another seat because of the new ratios.

This week there was chatter on Capitol Hill that Sens. Johnny Isakson (R-Ga.) and Thune would get the Finance seats. Coburn, however, outranks both Thune and Isakson in seniority even though all three were elected in 2004. He holds a slight edge because he served longer in the House than Isakson and represents a more populous state than Thune.

Coburn, a physician, has become an authority on spending and healthcare issues within the Senate Republican Conference.

He became a regular adviser to the Senate Republican leadership during the healthcare reform debate in the 111th Congress.

“He was instrumental in the healthcare debate,” said a Senate Republican aide. “Whenever an important spending issue comes up, his counsel is sought by many members, including leadership.”

Coburn also enjoys a close personal relationship with Obama, having worked with him on ethics legislation when the president served in the Senate.

Obama and Coburn could play a pivotal role in ironing out a deal on medical liability reform, an issue that the president mentioned in his State of the Union address on Tuesday.

Coburn last month said he’s stopped delivering babies because of high liability costs.

The Oklahoma senator said Wednesday that he plans to work on entitlement reform in the 112th Congress.

While opting not to comment on the open Finance Committee posts, Coburn indicated Wednesday he plans to use his position as the senior Republican on the Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations to oversee entitlements.