The Scoop
Senate Republicans are likely to take their budget resolution to the floor next week, according to three people familiar with the matter — a critical step toward enacting a border and defense spending bill that would vault them ahead of the House.
With the House in recess, the Senate is leaning toward kicking off its budget debate on Tuesday or Wednesday in an attempt to wrap it up by the weekend. That will be laborious, likely requiring Republicans to juggle the budget with confirming FBI director nominee Kash Patel, but the potential upside is high as the House encounters new roadblocks to its more far-reaching budget measure.
No final decision has been made, but Republicans said they are leaning toward the move. One aide said “it’s very likely.”
Both the Senate and House budget panels advanced their competing blueprints this week: The Senate moved a national security-focused plan that would deliver roughly $175 billion to border security and $150 billion to defense, while the House moved an even bigger bill that includes national security, taxes and a debt ceiling hike.
Senate Republicans are seeking to turn to tax cuts later this year, reasoning that it’s too difficult to pass a mega-package quickly and that Trump’s immigration team needs money ASAP. Sen. Roger Marshall, R-Kan., put his view on the House’s plan this way: “I’m rooting for them, but we’re not counting on it.”
“That’s my plan, is to have a ready-to-go option. I’m for one big beautiful bill until it doesn’t work. Then I’m not for it anymore,” Senate Budget Committee Chair Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., told Semafor on Thursday. “We should just keep doing what we are doing.”
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The Senate’s budget rules call for long hours but the 53-seat Republican majority ultimately will need just 50 votes for final passage. The chamber will need to undergo 50 hours of debate and then a symbolic “vote-a-rama” on unlimited amendments at the end of the process.
Although Democrats can’t filibuster the legislation and Republicans can bring the budget to the floor without delay, the minority party can offer as many amendments as it wants in a bid to wear down Republicans by forcing them to vote on politically risky proposals.
In other words, it could be a long week.
Once the Senate passes its budget, the two chambers will eventually have to square their visions before writing binding party-line bills to enact the savings that the budgets identify.
Notable
- Top Trump officials told Senate Republicans they need border money now, The Hill reports.
- House Republicans are pretty happy they got a budget agreement, Politico reports.