Senate Republicans voting in a dramatic late Saturday session narrowly cleared a key procedural step as they race to advance President Donald Trump’s package of tax breaks, spending cuts and bolstered deportation funds by his July Fourth deadline.
The final vote was very close, with a result of 51-49. This happened after a rollercoaster night at the Capitol, where Vice President JD Vance was present to cast a tie-breaking vote if needed. The atmosphere in the chamber was tense, as voting was delayed for more than three hours.
During that time, some senators who were undecided gathered for talks and held private meetings away from the main floor. In the end, two Republican senators chose to vote against moving forward, joining all the Democrats in their decision. There’s still a long weekend of work to come.
Key Opposition and Presidential Pressure
By nightfall, Trump was expressing frustration towards some Republican senators who were hesitant to support a new bill. He specifically threatened to campaign against Sen. Thom Tillis from North Carolina, who announced he couldn’t back the bill due to serious cuts to Medicaid. Tillis was concerned that these cuts would leave many people in his state without health care. Alongside him, Sen. Rand Paul from Kentucky also voted against the bill. Late Saturday night, Trump was making phone calls from the Oval Office to discuss the situation, according to someone familiar with the talks who preferred to remain anonymous.
There was a lot of growing tension from various groups. Billionaire Elon Musk called the plan “totally crazy and harmful.”
Legislative Details and Timeline
A lengthy bill called the “One Big Beautiful Bill Act,” which is 940 pages long, was made public just before midnight on Friday. Senators are expected to spend long hours debating it and suggesting changes in the coming days. If the Senate approves the bill, it will go back to the House of Representatives for one last vote before it can be sent to the President for approval.
Before the voting, the White House shared a message expressing its strong support for the bill. On Saturday, Trump was at his golf course in Virginia, and Republican senators shared updates about his visit on social media.
Republican Leadership Response
“Senate Majority Leader John Thune from South Dakota emphasized, ‘We need to work together to get this important law passed.”
Republicans have been using their control in Congress to move forward with their plans, even when facing pushback from Democrats. However, they’ve encountered several challenges along the way. Not all Republican lawmakers agree on cutting funding for programs like Medicaid and food assistance, which are meant to help people, in order to support the $3.8 trillion in tax breaks from the Trump administration.
Democratic Opposition and Procedural Challenges
Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer from New York criticized Republicans for introducing a bill late at night and pushing to pass it quickly before the public has a chance to understand its contents. To ensure everyone hears what’s in the bill, he called for the entire document to be read out loud in the Senate, which will take several hours.
With a slim majority, Republican leaders in both the House and Senate need nearly all their members to support new legislation. A recent report from the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office revealed that a proposed Senate bill could lead to an increase of about 11.8 million people without health insurance by the year 2034.
Make-or-Break Moment for GOP
This weekend could be a crucial turning point for Trump’s party, which has put a lot of its energy and support into his key domestic policy plan. Trump is urging Congress to finish the job and has called out the Republicans who are hesitating to get on board, asking them to unite and support the plan.
Bill’s Core Components and Controversies
The new law proposal is a bold but complex plan from the GOP. Its main goal is to make many of the tax cuts from Trump’s first term permanent, meaning they wouldn’t go away at the end of the year unless Congress steps in, which could lead to higher taxes for Americans. The bill also introduces additional tax breaks, like eliminating taxes on tips, and emphasizes spending $350 billion on national security, which includes funding for Trump’s plan to deport many immigrants.
Recent reductions in funding for programs like Medicaid, food assistance, and investments in renewable energy are causing significant disagreement among political leaders. Senator Ron Wyden from Oregon, a prominent Democratic figure, stated that these cutbacks could be devastating for the wind and solar energy sectors in the United States. Surprisingly, these proposed cuts are also leading to divisions within the Republican Party.
The Republicans are counting on budget cuts to make up for the money lost from tax changes. However, some politicians believe these cuts are too drastic, especially for individuals who rely on Medicaid for their health care. At the same time, some conservative lawmakers, concerned about the country’s debt, are calling for even deeper cuts.
Individual Senator Positions and Negotiations
Tillis mentioned that he talked to Trump on Friday to share his worries about a certain issue. Meanwhile, Paul from Kentucky disagreed with a part of the bill that proposed increasing the country’s debt limit by $5 trillion.
Senator Ron Johnson, a Republican from Wisconsin, initially opposed the bill but changed his mind a few hours later after some private discussions, allowing it to move forward. As the voting was close, everyone focused on Senator Lisa Murkowski from Alaska, who was in deep conversation with GOP leaders. Ultimately, she decided to vote in favor of proceeding with the bill.
A little while later, Senator Thune gathered some fellow conservatives, including Senators Rick Scott from Florida, Mike Lee from Utah, and Cynthia Lummis from Wyoming, in his office. Senators Vance and Johnson joined them as well. Their discussions went on for quite some time.
Eventually, Vance took the lead and brought everyone back to cast their votes. Later, Scott mentioned that he had a meeting with the president and said, “We all want to reach an agreement.”
Lee mentioned that the group had a conversation about how to save more money and reduce the budget deficit. He expressed confidence in the progress they are making and promised that more updates would be coming soon.
After Setbacks, Republicans Revise Some Proposals
The draft of the bill was held up because the Senate’s rules expert had to check it to make sure it followed specific guidelines. These guidelines, known as the “Byrd Rule,” prevent certain policies from being included in budget bills unless they can get 60 votes to pass, which is challenging given that the Republicans currently hold a slight majority of 53 to 47 in the Senate, and all Democrats are opposing Trump’s bill.
Republicans faced some challenges recently when several of their proposals, such as moving the costs of food stamps from the federal government to the states and cutting funding for the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, were found to violate certain rules. However, in the last few days, they have made quick changes and successfully brought those proposals back to the table.
The updated proposal suggests reducing a tax on Medicaid providers, which faced some challenges and concerns from various senators who were worried about the impact on rural hospitals. The revised plan pushes back the date when these tax cuts would begin. Additionally, it sets up a $25 billion fund to support rural hospitals and healthcare providers.
Economic Impact Analysis
The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) has reported that, according to the version of the bill passed by the House, about 10.9 million more people would lose access to health care, and at least 3 million fewer people would get help with food. The budget office is now starting to review the Senate’s proposal, which suggests even deeper cuts.
The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) has reported that a proposed House bill would provide a $12,000 tax break for the wealthiest individuals. However, it would end up costing low-income Americans around $1,600.
SALT Dispute Shakes Things Up
The Senate reached a compromise regarding the SALT provision, which allows people to deduct their state and local taxes from their federal taxes. This has been an important issue for lawmakers from New York and other states with high taxes. However, the final decision on this matter is still not settled.
The limit on state and local tax deductions, known as the SALT cap, is currently set at $10,000 per year. Some Republicans wanted to raise this limit to $40,000 a year. In the final version of the proposal, the cap has been increased to $40,000, but it will only be in place for five years. While some Republican senators feel this increase is still too high, House Republicans are not completely happy with the outcome.
House Speaker Mike Johnson told his fellow lawmakers to head home for the weekend. However, he made it clear that they should be ready to come back to Washington if needed.
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