Budget chairwoman enters Tennessee governor’s race

Rep. Diane Black (R-Tenn.) officially threw her hat into the Tennessee governor’s race on Wednesday, setting off a scramble to fill her position as chairman of the House Budget Committee.

Under a GOP conference rule known as the “Paul Ryan rule,” so named for the House Speaker, Black would have to step down from the chairmanship to run. Black could seek a waiver from the 2014 rule, but there is little enthusiasm for it among her Republican colleagues.

It’s a busy time for the Budget panel, as the House has been unable to reach a deal on a budget for 2018 that is critical to the GOP effort to reform the tax code. Republicans plan to include fast-track budget reconciliations rules covering tax reform in their blueprint, which would prevent Democrats in the Senate from filibustering tax legislation.

{mosads}Rep. Bill Johnson (R-Ohio) is already seeking Black’s position. He has begun reaching out to some members of the powerful Steering Committee that will choose the next chairman, GOP sources said. 

Other obvious choices from the committee may not put themselves in the running. Committee Vice Chairman Todd Rokita (R-Ind.) is rumored to be eyeing a Senate run.

Moving down the seniority list, Reps. Tom Cole (R-Okla.) and Mario Diaz-Balart (R-Fla.) have expressed reluctance to give up their powerful positions as Appropriations subcommittee chairs for a shot at the budget gavel.

“It’s really wide open if Rokita does run for the Senate,” said one member of the Steering panel.

Another nine Republicans are above Johnson in seniority on the panel.

Black announced her run in a YouTube video, in which she brandished her anti-abortion credentials and touted her ability to “stand up to the weak-kneed people in my own party when I had to.”

Committee members credited Black with forging compromises between Republican factions on the budget resolution, which passed committee just two weeks ago, but she has failed to whip enough votes to pass the resolution on the House floor.

Black represents a solidly Republican district. She won reelection last year by 49.3 percentage points.