Senators prepare for weekend work to meet Trump's deadline for taxes and spending cuts – National
The Senate is expected to wear out at a rare weekend meeting as Republicans run for President Donald Trump.
Republicans have used their majority in Congress to put the democratic opposition aside, but they have encountered a series of political and policy setbacks. Not all Republican lawmakers have proposed to reduce spending on Medicaid, food stamps and other programs
The 940-page bill is released by midnight on Friday. Senators are expected to conduct a procedural vote on Saturday to begin considering the legislation, but the timing is uncertain. With at least 10 hours of debate and a nightly voting meeting of countless amendments, there will still be a long road.
The Senate pass may be a few days away, and the bill requires a return to the House for the final round of votes before reaching the White House.
“This is developing,” said Senate Majority Leader John Thune.
The Republican Party’s Success or Failure Moment
The weekend meeting could be a change moment for Trump’s party, which has invested much of its political capital into his signature domestic policy plan. Trump is urging Congress to wrap it up, even if he sometimes sends mixed signals to allow more time.
In recent events at the White House, including Friday, Trump introduced the “Seeper” in the Republican Reservation to queue up.
“We can do it,” Trump said in a social media post. “It will be a wonderful celebration for our country.”
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The legislation is a series of ambitious but complex Republican priorities. Essentially, this will make many tax reliefs for Trump’s first term permanently, otherwise, if Congress does not take action, it will expire before the end of the year, resulting in potential tax increases for Americans. The bill would add new breaks, including taxes on tips and put $350 billion in national security burdens, including Trump's massive deportation agenda.
But the spending cuts Republicans rely on to offset lost tax revenues have raised objections within the Republican hierarchy. Some lawmakers say the cuts are too far away, especially for people who have access to health care through Medicaid. Meanwhile, conservatives who are worried about national debt are pushing for steeper cuts.
RN.C. Senator Thom Tillis said he was concerned about the fundamentals of the packaging and would not support a procedural motion to start the debate.
“I vote on the motion,” he said.
R-Wis. Senator Ron Johnson pushes for deeper cuts, saying he needs to look at the final legislative text.
Republicans revised some suggestions after setbacks
The release of the draft has been delayed as Senate members reviewed the bill to ensure it complies with the strict “Byrd rule” in the chamber, named after the late Senator Robert C. Byrd. Unless a provision can obtain 60 votes to overcome objections, this largely prohibits the inclusion of policies in budget bills. It will be Senate, Republican Fringe 53-47, Democrats unified against Trump's bill.
Republicans suffered a series of setbacks after the chief arbitrator of Senate rules determined that several proposal decisions did not match compliance. One plan would shift the cost of some food stamps from the federal government to states; the second would mask the funding structure of the Consumer Financial Protection Agency.
But over the past few days, Republicans have quickly revised the recommendations and restored them.
The final text includes a proposal to cut Medicaid provider tax, which has met parliamentary objections and opposes from several senators worried about the fate of rural hospitals. The new version extends the starting point for these cuts and builds a $25 billion fund to help rural hospitals and providers.
Most states use provider tax as a way to increase Medicaid reimbursement. Some Republicans believe this is a scam and should be abolished.
The non-partisan Congressional Budget Office said 10.9 million people would have no health care under the House version of the bill, reducing at least three million people to be eligible for food aid. The CBO has not yet publicly evaluated the Senate draft, which proposes a larger reduction.
The General Bureau said the highest-income people would cut taxes by about $12,000 based on the House bill, and the package would cost the poorest Americans $1,600.
The salt dispute cheers things up
The Senate includes compromises on so-called salt offerings, which are deductions to state and local taxes, a top priority for lawmakers in New York and other high-tax countries, but the problem remains unresolved.
The current salt cap is $10,000 a year, and a few Republicans want to increase it to $40,000 a year. The final draft includes a $40,000 cap, but five years instead of 10 years.
Many Republican senators say it's still too generous. Rep. Nick Lalota of New York has at least one house, Republican reservation says that's not enough.
Trump's deadline approaches
New York's Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer said Republicans abandoned the bill “in the night death” and were eager to complete the bill, and then the public knew exactly what it was.
House Speaker Mike Johnson, who brought colleagues home over the weekend and plans to return to Washington, said they were “very close.”
“We still want to meet before the fourth self-imposed deadline in July,” said R-la’s Johnson.
In the narrow Republican majority in the House and Senate, leaders need almost every member of the ship to ensure passage. Johnson and Thune rely on Trump to put pressure on retaining lawmakers and have been close to the White House.
& Copy 2025 Associated Press
