GOP-controlled Senate keeps taxpayer dollars flowing to criminal aliens after parliamentarian's ruling

As the Senate continues to work through the "big, beautiful bill," lawmakers axed yet another key provision from President Donald Trump's landmark legislation.

Senators are hammering out key amendments in the reconciliation bill before the final Senate vote, which will likely come Tuesday. Certain amendments, based on advisory rulings from the parliamentarian, are required to pass the 60-vote threshold instead of a simple majority, making it more difficult to codify key provisions in the bill.

'An unelected Senate staffer is thwarting the will of 75 million people who voted to make sure foreign alien invaders aren’t getting taxpayer benefits.'

Photo by Kayla Bartkowski/Getty Images

One of these amendments included a provision that would reduce federal funding for states that provide Medicaid to illegal aliens who were charged with additional violent crimes. Because of the parliamentarian's ruling, the amendment failed in a 56-44 vote on Tuesday.

As a result of these rulings, the parliamentarian has been the focal point of a lot of criticism leading up to the vote, particularly from prominent voices on the right.

"Elizabeth McDonough stopped the Senate bill from blocking illegals from getting Medicaid," Turning Point USA CEO Charlie Kirk said in a post on X. "An unelected Senate staffer is thwarting the will of 75 million people who voted to make sure foreign alien invaders aren’t getting taxpayer benefits. This is a red line. The Senate needs to CHANGE THE RULES, fire her, or find a solution. This is in the hands of the Senate to find a solution. We have 53 votes — figure it out! No more excuses."

Eric Lee/Bloomberg via Getty Images

Many Republicans and even the president have called for leadership to overrule the parliamentarian. Senate Majority Leader John Thune has the authority and the precedent to overrule her, but he decided against it.

"That would not be a good outcome for getting a bill done," Thune said.

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Trump's 'big, beautiful' agenda passes first major Senate test

President Donald Trump's Big, Beautiful Bill passed a major procedural milestone at 11:07 p.m. Saturday night, when the United States Senate voted 51-49 to invoke cloture. Cloture is an essential step in the upper legislative chamber, limiting the remaining time members have to debate and starting the countdown to when they can vote on passage.

The late-night vote was a close call on a lengthy and arduous process. Vice President J.D. Vance was on hand at the Capitol from around 8:20 p.m. on, in case his vote was needed. In his Executive Branch capacity, Vance serves as president of the Senate -- a constitutional role that empowers him to preside over Senate proceedings and cast the tie-breaking vote in cases of gridlock.

In the end, his vote was not needed for this hurdle; Republican Sen. Ron Johnson (Wisc.) -- a Trump ally but also a fiscal hawk and vocal critic of the bill -- switched his vote to a yes, allowing cloture to proceed. Republican Sens. Rand Paul (Ky.) and Thom Tillis (N.C.) voted no. Tillis's no vote was based on objections to restrictions the bill will place on states gaming their end of the 50-50 Medicaid expenses split with the federal government. Paul, a D.C. libertarian, was never counted on for a "yes."

The Big, Beautiful Bill, or H.R. (House Resolution) 1, as it's officially designated, funds key aspects of the White House's agenda, from deportations to border enforcement, making his first-term tax cuts permanent and adding no taxes on tips or overtime. It will be the signature legislative accomplishment of Trump's first year back in the Oval Office.

Cloture is a Senate procedure that limits further debate on a bill -- in this case, to 10 hours each, for the Republican and Democratic parties. Democrats drew the process out further by exercising their right to have Senate clerks read the bill first -- no small process for a 940-page bill. At 7:35 a.m., the Senate press gallery tweeted clerks had completed 470 pages of reading, or half of the bill, in the preceding 8 hours and 27 minutes -- setting them up for completion early Sunday evening.

Once they're done, Republicans are expected to yield most of their 10 hours -- starting the 10-hour timer for Democrats to debate passage overnight. Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) will be able to hold a final vote by early Monday morning.

If the Senate passes the bill, es expected after a successful cloture vote, it will go the House of Representatives, where the president and his legislative affairs team are actively engaged in courting Republican holdouts and critics to vote yes.

Old Democrat Comes Back To Haunt Trump From The Grave

'Parliamentarian is wreaking havoc on Trump's Big, Beautiful Bill, and Republicans are letting it happen.'

Exclusive: Republican senator introduces bill slashing funds to anti-American governments

Republican Sen. Marsha Blackburn of Tennessee is leading the effort to make sure our taxpayer dollars are actually working for the American people.

Blackburn introduced the United Nations Voting Accountability Act on Thursday, which would prohibit taxpayer funding or aid from going toward "foreign countries that oppose the position of the United States in the United Nations," Blaze News has exclusively learned.

'It is unacceptable for US aid recipients to use international platforms to undermine America and protect adversaries like Iran.'

Notably, America spends tens of billions of dollars on foreign aid, contributing more to the United Nations than any other country. Blackburn and many other Americans are insisting that we should not owe money to countries that oppose our interests.

"No more should American taxpayers have to question the value of foreign assistance to countries that oppose our values and interests," Blackburn told Blaze News. "The United States must be a good steward of taxpayer dollars, ensuring every dollar that we send to foreign nations drives global stability and advances American interests."

Photo by Jakub Porzycki/NurPhoto via Getty Images

"The United Nations Voting Accountability Act would ensure that taxpayers are not forced to fund countries that undermine and vote against the U.S. in the United Nations," Blackburn added.

The bill does allow the secretary of state, in this case Marco Rubio, to exempt countries if they make a "fundamental change" to the leadership and policies to the extent that they no longer oppose the position of the United States in the U.N.

Photo by Beata Zawrzel/NurPhoto via Getty Images

Following American airstrikes in Iran, adversarial countries like Russia, China, and Pakistan began circulating a resolution in the U.N. calling for a ceasefire, which "ignores Iran's support for terrorism" and "shields the Iranian regime from accountability," according to a press release from Blackburn's office obtained by Blaze News.

"While the resolution does not name the U.S. or Israel, its intent is obvious," the press release reads. "It is unacceptable for U.S. aid recipients to use international platforms to undermine America and protect adversaries like Iran."

This bill is also being sponsored in the House by Republican Rep. Warren Davidson of Ohio, who introduced the legislation in February.

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Republicans rage over Senate's ‘watered-down’ version of Trump's 'big, beautiful bill'

Republican lawmakers are becoming increasingly frustrated with the Senate as the parliamentarian continues to hack away at key provisions in President Donald Trump's "big, beautiful bill."

The latest ruling from the Senate parliamentarian has sent Republicans into a tailspin. It struck several Medicaid-related reforms that many conservatives fought for. Some of these provisions include limiting federal funds to states that allow illegal aliens to receive Medicaid benefits, prohibiting federal funds for "gender-affirming care," and preventing non-expansion states from increasing their current provider tax rates.

'The Senate should know better than to send a bill with this waste of taxpayer money back to the House.'

Bill Clark/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images

"How is it that an unelected swamp bureaucrat, who was appointed by Harry Reid over a decade ago, gets to decide what can and cannot go in President Trump’s One Big Beautiful Bill? The Senate Parliamentarian is not elected," Republican Rep. Greg Steube of Florida said in a post on X. "She is not accountable to the American people. Yet she holds veto power over legislation supported by millions of voters."

"We are trying to undo the America LAST insanity from the Democrats by kicking illegals off of Medicare and Medicaid and stopping taxpayer subsidies from being used for genital mutilation of children!!" Republican Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia said in a post on X.

Although the parliamentarian is able to issue advisory rulings over which provisions are in violation of the Byrd Rule, they can be overruled, which is what Republican Rep. Keith Self of Texas is calling for.

"The rogue Senate Parliamentarian should be overruled, just like activist judges."

Photo by Michael B. Thomas/Getty Images

It's not just the Medicaid provisions that have sparked outrage amongs Republican lawmakers. The Senate has hardly rolled back Biden-era green-energy subsidies that were implemented through the Inflation Reduction Act. Many Republicans in the House made it clear that aggressive cuts were nonnegotiable, yet the Senate is extending certain solar and wind subsidies through at least 2030 and in some cases through 2040.

"The American people are sick and tired of their tax dollars funding Chinese solar panels and inefficient wind turbines that are destroying our land," Republican Rep. Mary Miller of Illinois told Blaze News. "President Trump made it clear he wants no Green New Scam tax credits in the big, beautiful bill. The Senate must follow the House's lead and get it done — this is our opportunity to protect our farmland, our food supply, and our energy independence."

Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call Inc. via Getty Images

“Congress has a chance to end the left’s Green New Scam for good, but if Senate Republicans swap the House’s firm ‘placed in service’ deadline for the vague ‘construction begins’ standard, we will fail to deliver on President Trump’s promise," Republican Rep. Tom Tiffany of Wisconsin told Blaze News. "This loophole would let wind and solar subsidies drag on for years — long after Trump’s second term — destroying American farmland and threatening our power grid."

"Americans didn’t elect Republicans to rubber-stamp Joe Biden’s radical Green New Deal scam," Self said in a post on X. "The Senate’s watered-down 'Big Beautiful Bill' wastes billions on climate schemes."

Republicans maintained that if the Senate punts this "watered-down" bill back to the House, they will likely not have the votes to pass the bill before the July 4 deadline.

"Biden's Green New Scam offers massive, unchecked subsidies to billion-dollar corporations and Chinese manufacturers, undermining American energy independence and economic freedom," Republican Rep. Mark Harris of North Carolina told Blaze News. "Yet the Senate is reportedly gutting our hard-fought House measures to stop these tax giveaways. President Trump wants them gone, and so do I. The Senate should know better than to send a bill with this waste of taxpayer money back to the House.”

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Former Trump ambassador sets his sights on flipping key Senate seat

Former Republican Senator Scott Brown (Mass.) has now set his sights on a new political endeavor to boost the GOP's presence on Capitol Hill.

Brown previously represented Massachusetts in the Senate and served as ambassador to New Zealand and Samoa during President Donald Trump's first term. Brown announced Wednesday that he intends to continue his political career by taking back a New Hampshire Senate seat and replacing retiring Democratic Sen. Jeanne Shaheen.

'Chris Pappas wants a better title. I want a better America.'

Photo by Keith Bedford/The Boston Globe via Getty Images

Brown is the most high-profile Republican to enter the race after former GOP Gov. Chris Sununu decided not to run for the seat. As things stand now, Brown is likely to face off against Democratic Rep. Chris Pappas of New Hampshire.

"Like a lot of you, I'm worried about where this country is headed," Brown said in his announcement Wednesday. "New Hampshire is an amazing place to live, work, and raise a family. ... But in Washington, we haven't been represented by the right people.

"I’m running for the United States Senate to restore common sense, keep our border secure, and fight for our New Hampshire values," Brown wrote in a Wednesday post on X. "Chris Pappas wants a better title. I want a better America."

Photo by Suzanne Kreiter/The Boston Globe via Getty Images

Although both of New Hampshire's Senate seats have been held by Democrats for the last few election cycles, this race is not a long shot for Republicans.

New Hampshire has consistently elected Republican governors since 2016, and the GOP has maintained a majority in the state Senate. Democrats have held on and won the state for the past six elections, but by increasingly narrow margins. With a strong GOP presence in the state, it's very possible that Republicans could take back and flip another key Senate seat.

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GOP-controlled Senate keeps taxpayer dollars flowing to criminal aliens after parliamentarian's ruling

Trump's 'big, beautiful' agenda passes first major Senate test

Exclusive: Republican senator introduces bill slashing funds to anti-American governments

Republicans rage over Senate's ‘watered-down’ version of Trump's 'big, beautiful bill'

Former Trump ambassador sets his sights on flipping key Senate seat

GOP-controlled Senate keeps taxpayer dollars flowing to criminal aliens after parliamentarian's ruling

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