A competition to decide who will lead Republicans on the House Budget Committee in the next Congress is underway — even if the current occupant doesn’t get the promotion he’s seeking.
Missouri Rep. Jason Smith, the current top Republican on Budget, is running for his party’s top slot on the Ways and Means Committee to replace the retiring Kevin Brady, R-Texas.
But if Smith loses that three-way race against more senior Ways and Means Republicans Vern Buchanan of Florida and Adrian Smith of Nebraska, he is expected to try to remain the top Republican on Budget.