Senate GOP leaders are coming dangerously close to defying President Donald Trump, moving forward on their budget resolution today despite his explicit demand for “both Chambers to pass the House Budget.”
Of course, that’s not how they see it. Senate Majority Leader John Thune insists their two-track version is a back-up plan if the House can’t rally the votes for its budget paving the way for “one big, beautiful bill” that includes immigration, energy and tax policy. And even as Vice President JD Vance backed up the president when he came to a private GOP lunch on Wednesday, senators indicated he didn’t shut down their argument for proceeding.
“The president prefers one big, beautiful bill — so do I,” Senate Budget Chair Lindsey Graham told reporters. “But you always need a Plan B around here.”
Not all Senate Republicans agree with that, however. While Thune insisted Wednesday that “our colleagues are on board with the idea of proceeding,” Sen. Rand Paul, the only Republican publicly opposing the budget resolution, left the Wednesday lunch saying “it would be a waste of time” for the Senate to move forward with a marathon “vote-a-rama.”
And Sen. Josh Hawley told reporters he was “baffled” by GOP leaders’ strategy, adding later: “It’s getting to the point of absurdity that the leadership of the two houses won’t get on the same page.”
Buckle in for a long night — and early morning — as Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and Democrats plan to force Republicans to take tough amendment votes. There’s no limit during a vote-a-rama — it ends when senators run out of gas.
Over in the House: An emboldened Speaker Mike Johnson is using Trump’s endorsement of the House budget to rally Republican holdouts to “get it done.” Wary members still want to know how the speaker is going to reach $2 trillion in spending cuts without harming Medicaid services, and Republicans in Hispanic-heavy districts warned Johnson in a letter not to slash Medicaid or SNAP. But House GOP leaders believe the members will ultimately vote for the budget blueprint, which would instruct committees to find these savings, so as not to stand in the way of advancing Trump’s agenda.
What else we’re watching:
- Thune’s nomination victory lap: The Senate is on track to confirm Kash Patel as FBI director this afternoon, a day after Thune took a victory lap for confirming Trump’s 18th Cabinet pick. He noted it was the “fastest rate in getting nominees through the Senate confirmation process since 2001.”
- Collins talks shutdown: Sen. Susan Collins, top Republican appropriator, told reporters that government funding talks with Democrats are “not going well.” The shutdown deadline is March 14, and some lawmakers have begun to voice concerns that there’s a higher chance of a shutdown this time around.
- DOGE cuts: Some Senate Republicans think Elon Musk still needs congressional approval for the Department of Government Efficiency cuts. Sen. Rand Paul asked Vice President JD Vance during Wednesday’s private lunch that the administration send DOGE’s cuts to Congress in a rescissions package, which a simple majority in each chamber could approve. “All the stuff they’re doing with DOGE is good,” Paul told reporters. “But it’s not real until we vote on it.”
Meredith Lee Hill and Jennifer Scholtes contributed to this report.
