Trump looks to rally Republicans as Senate takes up his 'big, beautiful bill'
Congress is back in session, and President Donald Trump has wasted no time lobbying lawmakers to pass his "big, beautiful bill" in the Senate.
House Republicans narrowly passed reconciliation by a 215-214 vote in May after weeks of negotiations that crescendoed with Trump's appearance on Capitol Hill to rein in remaining holdouts. After a dramatic saga on the House side, the bill was sent to the Senate, where it will inevitably be rewritten and returned to the House.
The Senate is now back in session with the hopes of sending the bill back by the July 4 deadline, but trouble is already beginning to emerge in the upper chamber.
'So many false statements are being made about 'THE ONE, BIG, BEAUTIFUL BILL.'
RELATED: The senators to watch in reconciliation’s next battle
Republican Sen. Josh Hawley of Missouri was one of the first senators to draw a red line with respect to reconciliation. Hawley has repeatedly said that any cuts to Medicaid make him a "no" vote on the landmark legislation and has said the president backs his position.
"So many false statements are being made about 'THE ONE, BIG, BEAUTIFUL BILL,' but what nobody understands is that it's the single biggest Spending Cut in History, by far!" Trump said Monday. "But there will be NO CUTS to Social Security, Medicare, or Medicaid.
"The only 'cutting' we will do is for Waste, Fraud, and Abuse, something that should have been done by the Incompetent, Radical Left Democrats for the last four years, but wasn’t," Trump added.
Although there haven't been any direct cuts to the program, House conservatives fought for amendments to the Medicaid work requirements that would weed out bad actors and ensure that only those eligible receive the benefits. These work requirements were integral in gaining support from fiscal conservatives, and any attempt to roll them back may cost Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) some votes.
RELATED: Elon Musk takes jab at Trump’s 'big, beautiful, bill': 'I was disappointed'
Fiscal conservatives on the Senate side are also giving Trump a hard time, particularly Republican Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky.
Trump has likened Paul to Republican Rep. Thomas Massie of Kentucky in public and in private, noting their refusal to vote for other spending bills in the past. Massie was one of the two "no" votes on the bill in the House, and Paul is expected to vote against it in the Senate.
"The math doesn't add up," Paul said Tuesday. "I'm not supporting a bill that increases the debt by $5T. I refuse to support maintaining Biden spending levels."
"Rand votes NO on everything, but never has any practical or constructive ideas," Trump said Tuesday. "His ideas are actually crazy (losers!). The people of Kentucky can’t stand him. This is a BIG GROWTH BILL!"
RELATED: Spending hawks dig their heels in as White House battles to keep 'big, beautiful bill' afloat
With reconciliation talks back in full swing on the Senate side, Trump has been keeping Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) at arm's length.
Thune can afford to lose only three votes on the bill due to the 53-seat majority Republicans secured in November. Thune has reiterated his goal to find more savings and to permanently extend the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act just as Trump has asked for, and he is pushing for the July 4 deadline.
"When the American people elected [Trump] and a Republican Congress last November, they expected us to deliver," Thune said Tuesday. "We’ve worked hard to deliver on our mandate, and we are not taking our foot off the gas."
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Elon Musk takes jab at Trump’s 'big, beautiful, bill': 'I was disappointed'
President Donald Trump was working around the clock with House Republican leadership to secure enough votes for his "big, beautiful bill." After several overnight sessions and closed-door meetings, the bill passed the House last week with just one vote to spare.
Although many Trump allies championed the achievement, DOGE head Elon Musk expressed disappointment with the landmark legislation.
'I think a bill can be big, or it could be beautiful. But I don't know if it could be both.'
RELATED: Trump's 'big, beautiful bill' narrowly passes the House, notching another win for Johnson
In the days leading up to the vote, the fate of the bill was still unclear. Apart from spending hawks demanding deeper cuts and significant Medicaid reform, the SALT Caucus Republicans kept demanding a higher and higher cap for state and local tax deductions.
With several roadblocks in the way of the bill, Trump met with House Republicans multiple times both on the Hill and in the White House in an attempt to shepherd any defectors. The bill later passed in a 215-214 vote, with two Republicans voting against the bill, one voting present, and two not voting at all.
While most Republicans and Trump allies took a victory lap, Musk said he was "disappointed" by the bill.
"I was disappointed to see the massive spending bill, frankly, which increases the budget deficit, not just decrease it, and undermines the work that the DOGE team is doing," Musk said.
"I think a bill can be big, or it could be beautiful," Musk added. "But I don't know if it could be both."
'Hopefully, the Senate will succeed with the big, beautiful bill where the House missed the moment.'
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Musk is not alone in his disappointment. Several House Republicans, like House Freedom Caucus Chairman Andy Harris (R-Md.), said the bill does not do enough to address federal spending. Notably, Harris was one of the conservative holdouts leading up to the vote and was the only Republican who voted present on the bill.
“I share Mr. Musk’s concerns about the short-term adverse effect on the federal deficit of the limited spending reductions in the BBB," Harris told Blaze News. "Debt markets remained concerned about U.S. total debt and annual deficits. Hopefully the Senate will take those concerns into consideration as the legislative process moves forward.”
Republican Rep. Warren Davidson of Ohio echoed Musk's concerns about spending, urging the Senate to deepen spending cuts. Davidson and Republican Rep. Thomas Massie of Kentucky were the only two GOP members to vote against the bill.
"Hopefully, the Senate will succeed with the big, beautiful bill where the House missed the moment," Davidson said.
The bill is now on its way to the Senate, where lawmakers will inevitably rewrite major portions of the bill before punting it back over to the House before the proposed July 4 deadline.
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Spending hawks dig their heels in as White House battles to keep 'big, beautiful bill' afloat
Tensions are running high in Congress as the White House keeps pressuring fiscal conservatives to get on board with President Donald Trump's "big, beautiful bill."
Despite Trump's Hail Mary pitch to Republicans, specifically fiscal conservatives, Tuesday morning on Capitol Hill, reconciliation talks seem to be going south. While the Rules Committee wraps up its overnight markup, Republicans are still looking for the off-ramp to get their bill passed.
The whole process has been consumed by Republican factions making incompatible demands. The SALT Caucus Republicans were offered a tentative, and very generous, $40,000 cap for state and local tax deductions. Meanwhile, some members of the House Freedom Caucus have pushed for earlier implementation of Medicaid work requirements.
Although both factions made progress toward their respective goals, it still seems like nobody is happy.
'We're going to work with our colleagues to deliver, but there's a long way to go.'
RELATED: Trump pressures House Republican holdouts as reconciliation talks intensify
House Freedom Caucus Chairman Andy Harris (R-Md.) and Republican Rep. Chip Roy of Texas have been two of the most outspoken voices within the conference advocating for fiscal responsibility. Although both acknowledged that moving work requirements to an earlier date rather than the original 2029 implementation was a step in the right direction, they remain unpersuaded by Republican leadership and even the president.
"Look, we are greatly encouraged by the progress that's been made in the last 24 hours," Harris said during a presser Wednesday. "... I'm not sure this can be done this week. I'm pretty confident it can be done in 10 days.”
"We're going to work with the president today," Roy said during the presser. "We're going to work with our colleagues to deliver, but there's a long way to go. I want to be very clear. We've got to deliver on what we're talking about, but we're not going to be able to get the bill done, and that's what we're trying to achieve.”
Harris told reporters that they initially struck a deal with the White House last night but that they've since walked away from the agreement. A White House official countered the claim and said the administration offered Harris and other spending hawks an array of policy options that the president would allow on the condition that they are able to get the votes.
Trump is now set to meet face-to-face with the House Freedom Caucus and Republican leadership, including Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.), Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-La.), and Majority Whip Tom Emmer (R-Minn.). Notably, Emmer has not yet scheduled the floor vote as, the fate of Trump's bill hangs in the balance.
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Big, beautiful bill advances after 18-hour markup marathon while SALT talks go south
The House's big, beautiful bill passed through the Ways and Means Committee Wednesday morning along party lines after an 18-hour overnight markup. While this is a win for House Republicans, additional roadblocks appeared after negotiations with SALT Caucus members took a turn for the worse.
The SALT Caucus' primary advocacy focuses on increasing and even eliminating the federal deduction cap on state and local taxes. The deduction was capped at $10,000 by the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act in 2017. While codifying many of President Donald Trump's campaign promises, like no tax on tips and overtime, the GOP tax bill also raises the SALT cap to $30,000.
'They can sit and negotiate with themselves all they want, but there will be no changes unless I and the committee agree.'
Republican Rep. Nicole Malliotakis of New York, the only SALT Caucus member who sits on Ways and Means, was also the only SALT Caucus member who supported the committee bill.
RELATED: House Republicans to hike up Harvard endowment tax in reconciliation
"These provisions will save individuals and families thousands of dollars annually, and with today's passage out of committee, we are a step closer to delivering relief," Malliotakis said.
However, other SALT Caucus members continue to dig their heels in as the tension ramps up behind closed doors.
During a late-night meeting with leadership and SALT Caucus members, Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) attempted to negotiate a deal with Republicans in the SALT Caucus, all of whom represent blue states. The negotiations went south after the members booted Malliotakis from the meeting even though she is the only member with direct influence on tax policy.
“As the only SALT Caucus member on Ways and Means, all I know is they can sit and negotiate with themselves all they want, but there will be no changes unless I and the committee agree," Malliotakis said.
RELATED: Exclusive: House Republicans debunk Medicaid misconceptions as reconciliation talks resume
Johnson, who initially went into the meeting hoping to strike a deal that night, later said he expects negotiations to continue through the weekend.
"This bill, as written, with a $30,000 cap for those making under $400,000, is just woefully inadequate," Republican Rep. Mike Lawler of New York said Wednesday of the bill. "So no, this does not have my support, it will not have my support, and if this bill comes to the floor for a vote, I will vote no."
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Speaker Johnson pulls off another legislative miracle, this time with budget
The House narrowly passed the Senate's budget blueprint on Thursday, notching another win for Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.).
The vote was initially set to take place Wednesday night but was later postponed by Johnson after it became clear there wasn't enough support from fiscal conservatives to pass the budget. Ultimately, the blueprint passed in a 216-214 vote, with Republican Reps. Thomas Massie of Kentucky and Victoria Spartz of Indiana voting against it.
"If you were trying to hasten financial collapse of our country and bribe voters to go along with it, the strategy wouldn’t look much different than what Congress is doing today," Massie said. "The big beautiful bill cuts taxes while keeping spending on an increasingly unsustainable trajectory."
The House and Senate have already passed their own blueprints that included $1.5 trillion and $4 billion in cuts, respectively. With the House taking up the Senate's budget proposal, lawmakers have had difficulty reconciling the vast spending gap.
'Our ambition in the Senate is we are aligned in the House in terms of savings. We're certainly gonna do everything we can to be as aggressive as possible.'
Despite the backing of President Donald Trump's administration, fiscal conservatives disapproved of the Senate's budget, arguing that the proposed $4 billion in cuts are just a drop in the bucket in addressing the national debt. On the Senate side, lawmakers are insisting that their blueprint will give them enough wiggle room and that they are ultimately aiming to implement more aggressive cuts beyond their $4 billion target.
If the House's ambitious blueprint with $1.5 trillion in cuts were passed, committees would likely be unable to meet the required cuts, which would kill the reconciliation process altogether. Simply put, the Senate doesn't have the same appetite for cuts that the House Freedom Caucus and other fiscal conservatives do.
Nevertheless, some holdouts warmed up to the budget blueprint after Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) held a joint press conference with Johnson Thursday morning.
"Our ambition in the Senate is we are aligned in the House in terms of savings," Thune said. "We're certainly gonna do everything we can to be as aggressive as possible.”
"[This is] the first time publicly, the Senate leader has come out and actually said that we’re in the same ballpark with the House and Senate reductions," House Freedom Caucus Chairman Andy Harris (R-Md.) said Thursday. "Obviously we were happy with the House spending reduction because we all voted for it, so I think that’s a step in a positive direction.”
Other Republicans like Rep. Marlin Stutzman of Indiana, who were initially undecided, came around to supporting the budget after meeting with Johnson.
"I voted to pass the Trump-endorsed budget resolution before the House today so Congress can unlock the reconciliation process, which will grow the economy, increase American energy production, secure our border, and decrease spending to the same levels that House Republicans passed six weeks ago," Stutzman told Blaze News. "It is time American citizens and fixing our national debt take priority over wasteful, unnecessary spending.”
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JUDICIAL TYRANNY: Trump should NOT wait for Johnson to act
Out-of-control judges are posing a threat to Trump’s presidency, and while Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) claimed the House has the authority to keep them in line, Steve Deace of the “Steve Deace Show” believes that trusting him to fix it would be a mistake.
“Mike Johnson up there talking about ‘desperate times call for desperate measures,’ like Stephen A. Smith claiming he was going to punch LeBron James yesterday. Good Lord,” Deace says.
“We have one hero here, and it’s the president of the United States,” Deace continues. “Not just to save his presidency, but our country.”
However, it’s not just the president who needs to take action, but the American people.
“The president’s power, and therefore authority, to uphold immigration law doesn’t come from courts. It comes from the people,” he continues, noting that our power begins with the language we use.
"We have to stop using this language. We should never refer to trans men or trans women, ever. No such thing. We have to stop assenting to their verbiage,” he explains.
“We’re not going to beat them at their own game. We have to play our game,” he continues. “So what should Trump do?”
“Exactly what he is doing,” he says, answering himself. “Don’t hold a press conference, don’t issue an emancipation proclamation to say, ‘Hey, I’m coming out against Dred Scott.’ Don’t do any of that. No 1:00 a.m. or 2:00 a.m. post on Truth Social.”
“Let them sit down there and pontificate, hold court, let them sit there with a circular self-pleasuring squad all day long, kvetching, lamenting,” Deace continues. “Just keep doing what the people gave you the power to do, and then ultimately they get to exercise the choice.”
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Exclusive: Russ Vought meets with House Freedom Caucus to stoke support for clean CR, Trump to follow
Top personnel from the Office of Management and Budget, including Russ Vought and Dan Bishop, spent their Monday night in a closed-door meeting pitching a clean continuing resolution to House conservatives, according to multiple sources in the room. President Donald Trump is also set to meet with the House Freedom Caucus and aligned members on Wednesday.
Although the HFC and its congressional allies have historically been supportive of government shutdowns, Vought and Bishop argued that a clean CR would actually be the best-case scenario, sources told Blaze News. The funding deadline is less than two weeks away, on March 14.
With newly approved border funding, bullish spending cuts put forward by the DOGE, and a Trump-backed budget blueprint, House Republicans are keen to maintain momentum.
Vought made several points to the members in the room, noting that the Trump administration's impressive momentum would be stifled by an abrupt government shutdown. Additionally, passing a clean CR would allow Republicans to avoid negotiation with Democrats to pass a pork-filled omnibus bill.
While the room was filled with spending skeptics and fiscal conservatives, multiple sources told Blaze News that Vought's pitch was received well, categorizing the mood as "congenial" and "friendly." Several Republicans in the room who have previously been in the middle of the GOP's spending fights came away from the meeting with a positive outlook, the sources confirmed.
Vought argued that in order to keep "DOGE-ing," the federal government needs to stay open, according to multiple sources. Rather than diverting focus from President Donald Trump's policy priorities and the DOGE's directives in the form of a shutdown, attendees were encouraged to support a clean CR in order to properly implement the MAGA mandate that overwhelmingly won at the ballot box in November.
With newly approved border funding, bullish spending cuts put forward by the DOGE, and a Trump-backed budget blueprint, House Republicans are keen to maintain momentum.
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DOGE fight? Speaker Johnson speaks out AGAINST giving back to taxpayers
Elon Musk and Donald Trump have suggested that the government give the American people’s wasted tax dollars back to them, and while it seems like a great idea to most, one Republican lawmaker believes it's a horrible idea.
“The president said that a percentage of DOGE savings could maybe go back to the American people in the form of what he called ‘DOGE stimulus checks,’ something like 20%. How would that work?” Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) was asked on stage at CPAC.
“I mean, politically, that would be great for us, you know, send everybody a check,” Johnson responded. “But if you think about our core principles, fiscal responsibility is what we do as conservatives. That’s our brand, and we have a $36 trillion federal debt. We have a giant deficit that we’re contending with.”
“I think we need to pay down the credit card, right? That’s what I think we need to do,” he added.
Liz Wheeler of “The Liz Wheeler Show” couldn’t disagree more.
“He opposes it on principle,” Wheeler says. “‘Fiscal conservatism is our brand,’ he said. No, it’s not your brand, because you and many of your colleagues have been in Congress for decades now, and you haven’t done anything to stop the spending.”
“You have not done anything to pay down the debt and the deficit. All you’ve done is make it worse,” she continues, noting that Elon and Trump’s idea would actually help the American people.
“He’s actually doing something more effectively to practice fiscal conservatism than you’ve ever done,” she continues. “Yeah, we do have a lot of debt. We do have this deficit, and that’s not good, but the American people have prices that they’re facing. Whether it’s health care costs or the cost of eggs at the grocery store or housing.”
“It’s almost unaffordable to live,” she adds.
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