Congress: The Senate & The House

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Trump’s legislative agenda clears key committee vote after weekend of negotiations

The House Budget Committee voted Sunday night to advance President Donald Trump’s legislative agenda, with the sweeping bill clearing a key hurdle while setting up a potentially contentious series of votes with hardliners this week.

https://www.cnn.com/2025/05/18/politics/negotiations-underway-house-gop-bill?

Supreme Court lets Trump move toward ending temporary deportation protections for Venezuelans

The Supreme Court on Monday cleared the way for President Donald Trump’s administration to strip temporary deportation protections from potentially hundreds of thousands of Venezuelans.

https://www.cnn.com/2025/05/19/politics/supreme-court-tps-venezuelans?

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⚾️ Mike Johnson's closer

President Trump is making a trip to Capitol Hill tomorrow morning to convince conservatives to come together on the budget bill. It won't be his last.

Why it matters: House GOP officials are privately confident they will have an agreement before the Rules Committee hearing at 1am (not a typo) ET Wednesday. But it gets more difficult from there for Trump and Speaker Mike Johnson.

? Medicaid is likely the sticky subject tomorrow.

• House Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-La.) suggested on CNBC this morning the work requirements date would be moved up to "early 2027," from the current 2029 target.
• Rep. Chip Roy (R-Texas), who voted against the bill in the Budget Committee last Friday and then "present" last night, cited the implementation date as one reason.
• He's still pushing to change the share of Medicaid funding that's paid by the federal government, a big red line for some moderates.

But other GOP leadership aides insisted that nothing was final until all the members agreed.

Other gaps for Trump to bridge:

• ⚡️ The phase-out date for Biden's clean energy tax cuts.
• ? The SALT equation: How high for the cap and how long will it stay on the books?

Between the lines: While House and Senate committees have been "pre-conferencing" on contentious issues like Medicaid and IRA tax credits, individual senators are signaling they are reserving their right to alter provisions they don't like.

• Senators expect Majority Leader John Thune will be forced to alter the bill, even with his three-vote margin and an easier job than Johnson's.
• That will set up another vote in the House, where we expect the real skull-cracking to take place.

Zoom out: Adding urgency to the vote: the looming debt ceiling, which Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has suggested could come as early as July or August.

— Hans Nichols

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✈️ Scoop: Schumer squeezing GOP on Trump's plane

Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer plans to use the government funding fight to force a vote on preventing foreign planes from being used as Air Force One, we scooped this afternoon.

✈️ Why it matters: Democrats have latched on to the offer from Qatar to give a $400 million jet to Trump, arguing it reeks of corruption.

• "It is now on the Senate to prioritize our national security, protect Americans, and ensure that a foreign-owned plane never gets the call sign 'Air Force One,'" Schumer said in a statement while introducing the legislation.

⚖️ The intrigue: Schumer's bill could find sympathy from some Senate Republicans, who have raised concerns about the Qatari offer.

• Trump lashed out at news organizations that have suggested the gift is for the president. He said the jet is a gift to the U.S. and not him personally.
• Congressional Democrats have called for investigations into the proposed arrangement.

— Stephen Neukam

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Trump's Capitol visit

President Trump warned congressional Republicans during a visit to the Capitol today to not to "f**k around" with Medicaid, Axios' Andrew Solender and Victoria Knight write.

• It was a stark pushback to conservative lawmakers demanding steeper cuts to the program in Trump's "one big, beautiful bill."

Why it matters: Trump is already floating political retribution for Republican holdouts who don't get in line.

? The president also tore into Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.), who has been a firm "no" on the bill throughout the process, blasting him publicly and privately as a "grandstander" and saying he should be "voted out of office."

• Trump warned the GOP's blue state holdouts not to push too hard on the SALT deduction cap.

? The intrigue: House Speaker Mike Johnson cautioned the Senate at a closed-door lunch today not to make big changes to the bill, Axios' Stef Kight scooped.

• If Johnson can get his conference in line, his problem will soon move to Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) — with an important July deadline looming on the debt ceiling.

Sources tell Axios that Johnson projected a lot of confidence in the meeting.

• Go deeper.

 

? Johnson's plea to GOP senators

Speaker Mike Johnson is optimistic he can pass the "one big, beautiful bill" this week. Now he's working to stop the Senate from sending it right back with a whole new set of problems.

• Johnson cautioned the Senate in a closed-door lunch today not to make big changes to the reconciliation bill, we scooped this afternoon.
• Johnson told GOP senators, "We're going to land this plane" and to expect a vote tomorrow night.

Why it matters: Senate Majority Leader John Thune may have fewer complaining voices than Johnson, but key senators have been clear they will want changes to whatever the House finally sends over.

• Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) would consider voting for the package — and even raise the debt ceiling — but won't accept raising it by $5 trillion, he told us.
• Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wis.) wants way more spending cuts.
• Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) wants way fewer Medicaid cuts.
• Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.) has big issues with the cuts to renewable energy subsidies, he told Axios Pro.

— Stef Kight

? Schumer vows revenge on "nuclear option"

Thune is blazing forward with a controversial move to repeal California's EV mandate — and Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer is warning it will come back to bite him.

Why it matters: Schumer all but threatened to deploy similar strategies to get around opinions by key, nonpartisan rule makers if and when he grabs back control of the chamber.

• "What goes around comes around," Schumer said today.
• He's described the GOP move as a "nuclear option."

Driving the news: The Senate will vote as soon as tomorrow on a Congressional Review Act (CRA) resolution that would overturn California's Clean Air Act waivers, leading to an eventual ban on gas-powered vehicles.

• Republicans argue the California waiver is a unique case, arguing the GAO does not have a say in the CRA and the move does not count as overruling the parliamentarian.
• The debate "is not about destroying Senate procedure or any other hysterical claim the Democrats are making," Thune argued on the Senate floor today.
• Democrats say it is all semantics, and Republicans are leaving the door wide open for how the CRA can be interpreted and used in the future.

— Stef Kight and Stephen Neukam

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? Surprise! Senate passes no tax on tips

In a shock to many in the chamber, the Senate passed the No Tax on Tips Act today after no one objected to it being passed by unanimous consent.

• We scooped the plan by Sen. Jacky Rosen (D-Nev.) to ask unanimous consent to pass the bill. The expectation was that at least one senator would object.

The big picture: Rosen's move was aimed at daring Republicans to block a popular, Trump-backed policy.

• Rosen and other Democrats have attached themselves to popular, bipartisan tax priorities while Republicans move ahead with a massive, partisan tax package.
• Eliminating taxes on tips is one of the broadly popular policies included in the GOP bill.

— Stephen Neukam

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? Johnson's moment of truth

Speaker Mike Johnson is finally ready to vote — most likely tomorrow at this point — on the "one big, beautiful bill."

Why it matters: Johnson will lose if the GOP's public "no" votes follow through. But he's betting they won't and that his chances of winning are better now than later.

• "There were some people that were 'no' walking onto the floor that ultimately voted 'yes,'" House Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-La.) said tonight in reference to earlier budget votes this year.
• The intrigue: Johnson told reporters Trump could issue executive orders to ease concerns from Freedom Caucus lawmakers. He didn't elaborate.

Zoom in: The House Rules Committee still hasn't voted on the bill, despite a 1am ET start today.

• Johnson needs to release a manager's amendment to the bill before that vote.

? One surprise last-minute "no" threat is coming from Rep. John Rose (R-Tenn.), who blasted the deal to raise the state and local tax (SALT) deduction. He's running for governor in Tennessee.

• Rose is potentially offset by Rep. Ryan Zinke (R-Mont.), who told Punchbowl he thinks he's succeeded in getting language requiring the sale of public lands in Utah and Nevada stripped from the bill.

Rep. Clay Higgins (R-La.) told reporters tonight talks are "moving in the right direction."

• Rep. Ralph Norman (R-S.C.) said "all indications" are that a vote will happen tomorrow morning — but the Freedom Caucus will huddle after the bill text is released to take a group position on it.

— Andrew Solender and Peter Sullivan

ps:Jack@##$% all of them!!!!!

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? Scoop: NRCC, NRSC sic FTC on Google

Illustration: Tiffany Herring/Axios The House and Senate GOP campaign committees are calling on the FTC to investigate whether Google and Gmail suppress emails to conservative subscribers. Why it matters: Their call marks a resumption of hostilities in a long-running war between the Republican Party and Big Tech. Since Trump's election, there's been a bit of a detente, after top CEOs cut $1 million checks to his inauguration and appeared to embrace the MAGA mentality. But while other tech companies, like Meta, have made direct overtures to conservatives, there are signs the emerging MAGA-tech alliance may not be an enduring one. Driving the news: Sen. Tim Scott (R-S.C.), the chair of the NRSC, and Rep. Richard Hudson (R-N.C.), the chair of the NRCC, fired off a joint letter to FTC chairman Andrew Ferguson today, detailing their concerns. "Google's speech suppression practices are detrimental to American democracy and should not be allowed to persist for another election cycle," they write in a letter we obtained. They are calling for the FTC to consider their complaints as part of their inquiry, announced in February, "technology platforms deny or degrade users' access to services based on the content of their speech or affiliations." Zoom out: Conservatives have long accused tech and social media companies of altering their algorithms to silence or sideline their views. In October 2022, the RNC filed suit against Google for "blatant bias" against Republicans. The following August, it was dismissed. During Trump's first term, Facebook conducted a nearly yearlong audit into claims of anti-conservative bias. Zoom in: The lawmakers accuse Gmail, which they claim has 75% of the American market share, of sending more of their emails to spam and therefore hurting their fundraising. "In the 2024 election cycle, a mere 30 percent of NRSC emails were successfully delivered to the primary inboxes of Gmail users, with the vast majority directed into the intended recipients' spam folders where they would never be viewed," they write. — Hans Nichols

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? Senate GOP ready to ignore parliamentarian

Senate Republicans are moving forward tonight with repealing California's EV mandate — ignoring opinions from the Government Accountability Office and Senate parliamentarian.

Why it matters: Democrats called it the "nuclear option," warning Republicans are setting a new precedent for what kind of rules can be undone by Congress.

• "I suspect Democrats are trying to use a situation as cover to justify abolishing the filibuster the next time they're in charge," Majority Leader John Thune said tonight.

— Stef Kight

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? Senate word of the day: "changes"

After the House's agonizing all-nighter to just barely pass Trump's "one big, beautiful bill," GOP senators had a clear message: Expect changes!

• "There's some changes that we want to make," Sen. Markwayne Mullin (R-Okla.) told us, "but we don't want to change it so much that it doesn't look the same."
• "Undoubtedly, there's going to be changes," Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.) told reporters.

What to watch: The Senate's top priority is making sure all the pro-growth, business tax deductions are permanent, multiple senators told reporters today.

• Cuts to the Inflation Reduction Act energy tax credits will likely be a big point of contention. Sen. Jerry Moran (R-Kan.), one of four key senators defending the credits, said they are still looking at the details, but "we will look for some changes."
• Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wis.) has continued his conservative rallying cry for more cuts.
• "SALT, I think, will probably stay where it's at," Mullin said.
• And there is, of course, the long-brewing fight over just how much cost savings can be squeezed out of Medicaid.

— Stef Kight

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What issues to watch as ‘big, beautiful bill’ moves to the Senate

House Republicans were jubilant after muscling through President Donald Trump’s “big, beautiful” tax and immigration package by a single vote. But across the Capitol, senators were more cautious. Senate Majority Leader John Thune can afford to lose three Republican senators and still pass the bill, and there are more than that, right now, who have problems with it. Read More.

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? Surprise agreement on 2026

House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (left) and House Speaker Mike Johnson. Photos: Via Getty Images

Republicans and Democrats are at odds over nearly everything in President Trump's reconciliation bill, but they are in strange agreement that the 2026 election will be contested over the provisions contained within its 1,000+ pages. Why it matters: The 215-214 vote yesterday sets up 18 months of trench warfare to define the bill's impact on Medicaid, tax rates and the southern border. For Republicans, it's taxes, the border and health care for undocumented migrants. For Democrats, it's Medicaid, SNAP and tax cuts for the rich. ? "It's a vote that every single vulnerable House Republican will come to regret next year," thundered a Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee memo. "The DCCC will use their words against them over and over again like the albatross it is." The other side: The National Republican Campaign Committee has already launched a five-figure ad hitting its early targets, including Rep. Adam Gray (D-Calif.). "Illegals get freebies, you get the bill," the narrator intones. "Tell Adam Gray: Help Americans, not illegal immigrants." Its own strategy memo claimed, "House Democrats just gave Republicans a generational opportunity to go on offense." Zoom out: Rarely does a singular vote define an entire election cycle. One exception was former President Clinton's 1993 omnibus budget bill, which passed 218-216, with all 175 House Republicans opposed. A late "yes" vote from Rep. Marjorie Margolies-Mezvinsky, a freshman from Pennsylvania (and Chelsea Clinton's future mother-in-law), hounded her and led directly to her defeat in 1994. The GOP picked up 54 seats and the majority for the first time in 40 years. Zoom in: As the November 2026 election gets closer, the ad buys will get bigger, but the subject matter is likely to stay the same. The Democratic strategy is clear: Accuse Republicans of stripping millions of Americans of Medicaid and leaving millions of children in danger of losing their school lunches. Republicans will answer the Medicaid charge, in part, by trying to change the subject and accuse Democrats of wanting to provide health care to undocumented immigrants. They will claim Democrats voted for a tax increase and failed to help secure the southern border. The bottom line: The election cycle is still early. Other potential events — a war, a recession or (say) a global pandemic — can always subsume a single vote and make the current issue set look small. But ad-makers on both sides have plenty of material to mine in the House-passed bill and paint vulnerable members as heartless, clueless or both. — Hans Nichols

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? Coming fights: Stock ban, crypto

Democrats are preparing to shove forward a pair of party-splitting anti-corruption measures when they're back in D.C. from the Memorial Day recess.

1. Stock trading ban: A group of Senate Democrats has reintroduced a bill to ban stock trading by members of Congress, as we scooped yesterday.

• Both parties are pushing to own the topic: Trump says he'd sign a stock trading ban, and Senate Republicans introduced their own version, the PELOSI Act.

2. Crypto: Senate Democrats are trying to attach a ban on presidents profiting from stablecoins to the GENIUS Act, a first-of-its-kind regulation that 18 Democrats voted to advance this week.

• Democratic leader Chuck Schumer and Sens. Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.) and Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) will file an amendment to the bill to prohibit the president and other officials from profiting from stablecoins, as we first reported. Schumer's backing means the amendment is likely to get a vote.
• "Passing the GENIUS Act without our anti-corruption amendment stamps a congressional seal of approval on Trump selling access and influence to the highest bidder," Merkley told us.

— Stephen Neukam

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?️ Trump's Senate slog

Illustration: Eniola Odetunde/Axios

Senate fiscal hawks appearing on Sunday shows suggested they're prepared to stall President Trump's "big, beautiful bill" in an attempt to force deeper spending cuts. Why it matters: Getting the bill through the House last week was far from painless for Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.), who had to thread the needle between rival GOP factions, and has all but begged senators "not to meddle" with the legislation. ? Zoom in: Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wisc.) told CNN's "State of the Union" he has enough Senate allies to hold up the legislation, Axios' Avery Lotz writes. He wants deeper cuts and has repeatedly called for a return to pre-pandemic spending levels. Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) said on "Fox News Sunday" that the spending cuts included in the House bill "are wimpy and anemic." ? Between the lines: Budget hardliners in the House made noise before ultimately voting for the bill after Trump put pressure on them. The process could play out the same way in the Senate.

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⚠️ Senate vs. Putin

Senate Republicans are seizing on President Trump's growing frustration with Russian President Vladimir Putin to argue the time to impose fresh sanctions on Russia is now.

Why it matters: Trump's tone on Putin has shifted in recent days, calling the Russian president "crazy" and warning he is "playing with fire" in Ukraine while Trump heads off "really bad things."

• The Kremlin dismissed Trump's criticisms — after Russia escalated its missile and drone attacks against Kyiv this weekend — with its former president Dmitry Medvedev posting on X: "I only know of one REALLY BAD thing — WWIII. I hope Trump understands this!"

? Zoom in: The Senate wants to translate Trump's words into action.

• "ITS TIME FOR SANCTIONS STRONG ENUF SO PUTIN KNOWS 'game over,'" Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) posted today on X.
• "Pres Trump shld take the decisive action agst Putin that he takes agst Harvard," Grassley said in another post. "Sanctions for Putin like no fed grants for Harvard."

Zoom out: Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) said last week he is ready to move on a popular, bipartisan sanctions bill if Russia won't come to the table in good faith.

• But he was also clear that he "will work" with the White House on timing and implementation.
• Trump's latest criticisms could give Thune the space he needs to move forward as pressure from Russia hawks in his own conference builds.
• Senate Democrats have been frustrated Thune isn't moving faster to bring sanctions to the floor for a vote.

Driving the news: Trump's rhetoric against Putin echoed throughout the Senate today.

• "I'd love to do it with or without the White House, but I want to do it the way that's most helpful to the White House as well," Sen. Kevin Cramer (R-N.D.) told reporters about moving forward with sanctions.
• "Same ol', same ol' from Putin's Russia," Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) posted. "There's a new sheriff in town. The old playbook won't work this time."
• Graham published a response to a Wall Street Journal op-ed, arguing in favor of more sanctions.

The bottom line: Graham and Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) have a bill to hit Russia with economic sanctions if Putin refuses to negotiate with Ukraine — or if Russia launches another attack after a peace deal is reached.

• The legislation sets a 500% tariff on goods imported from countries that buy Russian oil.
• It has 82 cosponsors.

— Stef Kight and Hans Nichols

Schumer's recess itinerary

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer will spend the week away from D.C. campaigning against the GOP's "big, beautiful bill."

Why it matters: Schumer is placing pressure on fractures that are already present among Senate Republicans, most prominently proposed cuts to programs like Medicaid and SNAP.

• Schumer made stops today at two charities in Rochester and Oswego in Upstate New York, slamming Republicans for proposed cuts to food assistance programs.
• He'll hit New York City later this week to talk about rising energy costs, fighting back against GOP attacks on clean energy projects.
• Moderate Senate Republicans have raised concerns about the cuts to social programs, while conservatives are hammering the table for even deeper spending reductions.

The big picture: Schumer and Democratic leadership want to make parts of the bill so unpopular — like the cuts to Medicaid and SNAP — that the legislation backfires on Republicans in the 2026 midterms.

• Schumer announced this week that Senate Democrats will unanimously oppose the reconciliation package on the Senate floor.
• "This bill is downright ugly — a job killer, a price raiser, a care slasher and massive pile on to the national debt," Schumer said at an event in New York City yesterday.

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— Stephen Neukam

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Powerboard: The Harvard Dems

Data: U.S. Congress member bios; Chart: Axios Visuals

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? Senate chopping block

President Trump's budget bill is about to meet the realities of the Senate, where the rules of reconciliation could help Democrats force changes to the bill.

Why it matters: Senate Republicans have been quietly working to ensure Trump's budget bill gets a clean bill of health from the Senate parliamentarian.

• But GOP leader John Thune is at the mercy of Senate Parliamentarian Elizabeth MacDonough, who is the final decision-maker if a given provision can pass the "Byrd bath," named for the late Sen. Robert Byrd (D-W.Va.).
• The process Senate Republicans are using only allows for budget-related items in the bill, in exchange for being able to pass with just 51 votes. Any policies deemed unrelated to the budget will be excised.
• Top Senate Dems are planning an aggressive push to strip out a wide array of policies from the reconciliation package, sources told us.

Zoom in: Sources from both parties pointed to these issues as some of the likely major fights to come in the Senate over the reconciliation package.

1. The REINS Act would significantly boost congressional authority to review and stop federal regulations. Republicans are expecting a fight to convince the parliamentarian that it is budget-related, sources told us.
2. Gender-affirming care: The House bill would prevent the use of Medicaid to cover gender-affirming care. Democrats plan to argue this is more about a political agenda than making changes to the federal budget.
3. AI moratorium: The House bill includes a 10-year ban on state laws regulating artificial intelligence.
4. Energy permitting: The House-passed bill includes an expedited permitting process for certain natural gas energy pipeline projects, capping all federal and state review periods to a maximum of one year.
5. Immigration fees: Democrats may also try to push back on the bill's major fees for asylum seekers, arguing it is more about deterrence than a genuine revenue raiser.

— Stef Kight and Stephen Neukam

⏰ Rescissions go-time

House Speaker Mike Johnson is eager to take up the $9.4 billion rescissions package that will land in Congress on Tuesday.

Why it matters: The White House wants a big public fight over funding for NPR, PBS and foreign aid. So do House Republicans.

• "When the White House sends its rescissions package to the House, we will act quickly by passing legislation to codify the cuts," Johnson said on X today.

Driving the news: The hard work of making the "one, big beautiful bill" will occupy the Senate in the coming weeks.

• The House will likely focus on messaging bills, while appropriators start to translate Trump's FY 2026 budget requests into actual bills.
• The rescissions process — at least in the House — will be a little bit of both. It will serve as a release valve for conservatives who have bottled up years of hatred for NPR.
• But it will also be an attempt to codify Trump's DOGE cuts into law.

— Hans Nichols

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? Protesters swarm House GOP

Most Republicans aren't holding in-person town halls right now, on the advice of the NRCC. For those who do, they're facing quite the crowds:

1. At a press conference today at the state Capitol, Rep. Gabe Evans (R-Colo.) defended his support for President Trump's spending bill over loud shouting and chants, Axios Denver reported. Joined by Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-Colo.), he tried to recast the bill as "a win for Coloradans."
2. At a town hall yesterday, attendees repeatedly booed Rep. Ashley Hinson (R-Iowa) as she defended the budget bill and praised Trump. Hinson noted in a later post on X that she's not afraid to face a tough crowd, and that some attendees also came with praise for the prior tax cuts.
3. At a town hall on Tuesday, Rep. Mike Flood (R-Neb.) faced a tough crowd after Nebraska Democrats urged people to "pack the place to ask him the relevant questions." Flood told the crowd they didn't represent the views of most Nebraskans after people loudly told him they supported taxpayer benefits for undocumented immigrants.

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Impact: Senators Call on DOJ to Investigate Potential DOGE Conflicts of Interest After ProPublica Report

What Happened: Three Democratic senators asked the Justice Department and other federal authorities to investigate whether members of the Department of Government Efficiency helping to downsize federal agencies violated conflict of interest laws by holding stocks in companies that their agencies regulate.

https://www.propublica.org/article/doge-aides-conflict-of-interest-senators-letter?

ps:They think they can get the DOJ to actually investigate? Let alone have it be fair?????

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? House GOP doubles down on foreign investor tax

House Ways and Means Chair Rep. Jason Smith is defending Section 899 of Trump's budget bill, calling it a way to keep other countries "in check."

Why it matters: Wall Street is worried that a tax on foreign investment contained in the "one, big beautiful bill" could make overseas investors reluctant to buy U.S. assets — at a time they are already wary of U.S. policies.

• "A big concern is that foreign governments, based on agreements entered into by the Biden administration, [are] trying to suck away billions of dollars from U.S. companies," Smith (R-Mo.) told Axios' Neil Irwin at the Reagan National Economic Forum.
• "We're the first country in 2017 that created a global minimum tax. They don't even accept our global minimum tax. That's completely unfair."
• "We're being punished for actually following what they're trying to do."

Zoom in: Section 899 proposes increasing tax rates for foreign direct investment from countries with unfair tax policies, as judged by the Trump administration.

• For example, an overseas sovereign wealth fund that owns U.S. stocks and bonds could face a tax on the earnings on its investments.
• The fear is that such a levy would turn off foreign investors at a crucial moment: there are concerns the safe-haven status of U.S. assets is in question, which would make it more difficult to borrow.

— Courtenay Brown

? Powerboard: Senate's perfect attendees

Data: Quorum; Chart: Axios Visuals — Kathleen Hunter

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Republicans have a plot to make Democrats take the fall for budget bill: report

The GOP is setting up Democrats to be the “fall guy” for their unpopular moves, according to Bloomberg columnist Erika D. Smith.

https://www.newsbreak.com/news/4034279318964-republicans-have-a-plot-to-make-democrats-take-the-fall-for-budget-bill-report?

ps:Seriously!!!!!

⏰ Thune's "stretch goal"

John Thune sketched an ambitious timetable for passing a compromise budget bill, telling members of the Finance Committee on Monday night that they need to move quickly to meet a July 4 deadline for President Trump's signature.

Why it matters: Pens need to be put down soon. The Senate GOP leader is signaling to his conference that debating and drafting will need to end if they want to meet their self-imposed deadline.

• "The leadership is going to try to hit the president's goal of getting this done by July 4, which means things are going to have to move much faster," Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas) told reporters.
• Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.), said the target was for the Finance Committee to get a draft out by the end of the week, describing that as "a stretch goal."

Zoom in: There are still deep concerns in the GOP conference about the ratio of tax and spending cuts, as well as Medicaid spending and which green energy tax cuts to preserve — and for how long.

• "I didn't hear the leader say no to anybody," Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wis.) said after the meeting.

Zoom out: Senators expect the White House to get more involved soon to help resolve their differences. Thune met with Trump today.

• The president also spoke to Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) who claimed Trump "said again, NO MEDICAID BENEFIT CUTS," on X.

Between the lines: Senate GOPers have for months been telegraphing some of the tax policy changes they want to make.

• It's long been a goal of Senate Finance Committee Chair Mike Crapo (R-Idaho) to make three provisions of Trump's 2017 tax bill — the R&D deduction, bonus depreciation and interest expensing — permanent.
• They expire after five years in the House version.
• And there's a desire to lower the $40,000 SALT deduction that blue-state House Republicans fought so hard to include in their version.

— Hans Nichols

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? Musk nukes Johnson and Thune

Elon Musk is aiming his ire, and massive online following, at House Speaker Mike Johnson and Senate Majority Leader John Thune.

Why it matters: In private, Musk failed to save the electric vehicle tax credit from being axed by the Trump budget bill, our colleague Marc Caputo scooped earlier today. Now he's trying to nuke the entire bill.

• In the process, Musk is giving fodder for Democratic ad-makers next fall.
• "Congress is making America bankrupt," he posted after calling the House-passed budget bill a "disgusting abomination."

? This is a big test of Musk's real political power, especially when so much of his influence over the past six months has flowed from his tight relationship with President Trump.

• ☹️ "My friend Elon is terribly wrong," Johnson told reporters after Musk's posts today.
• "I know that the EV mandate — very important to him. That is going away, because the government should not be subsidizing these things as part of the Green New Deal. And I know that has an effect on his business. And I lament that," Johnson said.
• Thune said he hopes Musk will keep reading the bill and "come to a different conclusion."

? Zoom in: Musk blasted out his post while Republican senators were gathered for their weekly lunch.

• Phones were passed around and the post was discussed toward the end of the meeting, attendees told us.
• "We obviously respect everything Elon did on DOGE. On this we just have a difference of opinion," Thune said.
• Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-Ala.) told us he understands Musk's frustration with the spending levels, adding he hopes the Senate version of the bill will have more spending cuts.

The intrigue: Musk's outburst came the same day that the White House sent its rescissions package to Congress, which will allow Congress to codify many of the cuts identified by Musk's DOGE.

• Johnson told reporters he will "move it as quickly as our rules allow us," setting up a possible floor vote next week for Congress to cut funding to NPR, PBS and USAID.

— Stef Kight and Hans Nichols

? Pic du jour: Jeffries agrees with Musk

House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries displays an Elon Musk post on X at a press conference at the U.S. Capitol on June 3. Photo: Andrew Solender/Axios. Not photoshop: That's House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries sharing a blown-up version of Musk's post. "Elon Musk and I agree with each other," Jeffries said. "Every single Republican who voted for the One Big Ugly Bill should be ashamed of themselves." Go deeper — Andrew Solender

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? Scoop: Dems target Bondi

Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-Md.) is demanding documents and other information from Attorney General Pam Bondi about the Justice Department's decision to charge Rep. LaMonica McIver (D-N.J.).

Why it matters: The investigation marks a new chapter in Democrats' growing conflict with the Trump administration over efforts to prosecute officials from other branches of government.

• Raskin, the ranking member of the Judiciary Committee, could run into considerable roadblocks in his probe as he lacks subpoena power.
• His outreach to Bondi signals a potential full-blown investigation should House Democrats return to power after the midterms.

Driving the news: In a letter to Bondi first obtained by Axios, Raskin argued the charges are "in violation of long-standing ... policies designed to prevent exactly this type of politically motivated abuse of prosecutorial power."

• He pointed to reporting that the DOJ did not consult the Public Integrity Section before filing the charges — a departure from rules around the prosecution of members of Congress and congressional staffers.
• Raskin noted that the acting U.S. attorney for New Jersey, Alina Habba, previously served as Trump's personal lawyer, writing that she has abandoned "any pretense of legal independence or official neutrality."
• The DOJ and the U.S. attorney's office in New Jersey did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

— Andrew Solender

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GOP tries to rein in Musk

Photo illustration: Maura Losch/Axios. Photo: Patrick T. Fallon/Bloomberg via Getty Images

House Republicans are trying to talk Elon Musk down from the ledge as he continues to heap criticism on President Trump's "One Big, Beautiful Bill." House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) said he called Musk yesterday — but Musk didn't answer, Axios' Andrew Solender reports. "There's a sense that Elon is still learning about the full number of wins in the One Big, Beautiful Bill," one House Republican told Axios. ⚡️ Why it matters: With over $400 billion at his disposal, the Tesla and SpaceX owner could drown Republicans in opposition cash. And he's saying GOP lawmakers who voted for the bill should be "fired." Musk trashed the bill yesterday as a "disgusting abomination," and the criticism has continued today. Posts today by Elon Musk on X ? Zoom in: There is also simmering anger behind the scenes. Johnson told colleagues in a closed-door meeting that Trump is "pissed off" at Musk, according to a source familiar with his comments. ? Johnson said he had a "great conversation" with Musk on Monday morning, before the social media rampage began, in which Musk said he would support Republicans in next year's midterms. "I think he's flat wrong," about the bill, Johnson said at a press conference today. "I think he's way off on this, and I've told him as much." ? The latest: The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office said today that the bill would increase the federal deficit by $2.4 trillion over the next decade. Go deeper.

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✂️ Senate flirts with deeper cuts

Key Senate Republicans strategized with Trump today on how to cut spending deeper than the House-passed budget bill.

Why it matters: "Failure is not an option," Senate Majority Leader John Thune told reporters after the hour-and-a-half meeting.

• "We are going to cut some more money from what the House has done," Sen. Roger Marshall (R-Kansas.) told us.
• "Can we get to $2 trillion? Do we make all those business tax provisions permanent or not?" he said. "I think those are the big issues."

Inside the room: Members of the Senate Finance Committee were joined by Vice President Vance, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, National Economic Council Director Kevin Hassett and Deputy White House Chief of Staff Stephen Miller.

• Hassett shared his own economic forecasts, suggesting that the economy can grow faster than 4% annually if the bill is passed into law.
• "The President is so positive about the 4.6 growth number," Marshall said. "The tariff money coming in is more than we were expecting."

Between the lines: The SALT deduction cap, a key sticking point with the House, came up.

• Thune has been clear the Senate has some serious policy differences on raising the cap to $40,000, as the House bill does.
• But he also signaled flexibility on SALT. "It's about 51 and 218 so we will work with our house counterparts and the White House to try and get that," Thune said.

Zoom out: Thune is barreling forward to try to meet a July 4th deadline with major, lingering disputes in his conference — and with the House.

• Text of the One Big Beautiful Bill (Senate's Version) is now rolling out — beginning with some of the easier parts as Republicans hash out major differences over Medicaid, taxes and spending cuts.

What to watch: The Finance committee will be the last across the finish line, grappling with the biggest and most controversial parts of the bill — taxes and Medicaid.

— Hans Nichols and Stef Kight

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? 3 hot numbers

The Congressional Budget Office threw three curveballs today into the tax, tariff and spendings debates that have roiled Washington under President Trump. Why it matters: It wasn't quite choose your own adventure, but it was choose your own numbers. "You don't need to go back that far to see how wrong the CBO has been," House Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-La.) said in response to today's estimate that the bill would add $2.4 trillion in debt over 10 years. But then the White House jumped on the CBO's estimate that Trump's tariffs would reduce the deficit by $2.8 trillion over 10 years. "When you combine the two — the deficit will be cut by $500 billion over ten years," White House spokesman Alex Pfeiffer said on X. And Democrats are pushing the CBO's estimate that nearly 11 million Americans would lose their health insurance. "This bill is simply families lose, and billionaires win," Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.) said in a statement. — Hans Nichols ? "Big Beautiful Betrayal" At his presser today, Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer stood by a posterboard titled "Well, We're All Going to Die Act," featuring CBO estimates (see item #2) on the health care and nutrition fallout from Trump's budget bill. Why it matters: Senate Democrats are prepping a month-long messaging campaign against the bill, which Dems are calling "One Big Beautiful Betrayal." Democrats will spend the next three weeks focusing on three different parts of the reconciliation bill: Health care this week, rising prices and job losses next, and then tax breaks for the rich. The bottom line: Schumer and his party have little control over whether the bill passes. But sharp messaging would help Dems define the package ahead of the 2026 midterms. — Stephen Neukam