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USA Today
an hour ago
- Business
- USA Today
Senate releases latest version on Trump's big bill. Next step: Weekend votes?
Senate Republicans have sparred with each other and the parliamentarian over a variety of provisions in the sweeping legislation. WASHINGTON - President Donald Trump's sweeping tax, spending and policy bill is heading for a climatic weekend showdown on the Senate floor after Republicans near midnight on June 28 released more text of a plan that calls for cuts to Medicaid, increases in immigration spending and the end of taxes on tips and overtime wages. Senate Majority Leader John Thune has been working to deliver Trump a major legislative win, while navigating conflicting concerns from some of his fellow Republicans about how the bill could impact the federal deficit, health care coverage for low-income constituents and their own political popularity. The South Dakota senator told reporters as he left the U.S. Capitol on June 27 that he hopes to begin a marathon floor debate on June 28 but also acknowledged he may not have yet cobbled together the necessary support from inside his GOP ranks to officially begin the process. Thune and Trump face complications after Senate Parliamentarian Elizabeth MacDonough's rulings on what was and was not within the scope of legislation that the president and Republicans have dubbed the "big, beautiful bill." MacDonough over the last several days has found several Senate GOP provisions in violation, including attempts to repeal federal food aid for noncitizens, multiple measures softening environmental regulations and restrictions on federal judges' ability to block government policies. Addressing many of those rulings, Senate Budget Committee Chairman Lindsey Graham released significant portions of the new bill near midnight. "If you like higher taxes, open borders, a weak military and unchecked government spending, this bill is your nightmare," the South Carolina Republican said, adding that the legislation "contains all of President Trump's domestic economic priorities." Thune's next hurdle will be rounding up enough support to meet the 51-yes-vote threshold to begin debate, with numerous members of his Republican conference expressing reservations as of late June 27 and no Democrats signaling he'll have their support. In the Capitol heading into the weekend, several Republicans said they were itching to get going with the debate. "We're gradually going from thoughtful, rational deliberation into the foothills of jackassery," Sen. John Kennedy, R-Lousiana, told reporters on June 27. "We're talking about the same things over and over and over. It's clear we're not going to (have) unanimity on some of this. That's why God made votes." For now, the timing of the first vote remains unclear but the Senate is scheduled to convene at 2 p.m. ET for a rare Saturday session on June 28. If and when the Senate does approve the legislation, it will need to be reconciled with the House, which narrowly passed a first version in May. Trump has pressed Senate Republicans to stay on his ambitious timeline to complete their work and get it back through the House in time for the measure to be on his desk for signature into law by July 4. But the president and House Speaker Mike Johnson also are acknowledging their immediate ambitions might not become reality amid deep internal GOP policy disputes and complex Senate rules that have sent the mega bill through the legislative shredder.
The Hill
3 hours ago
- Business
- The Hill
GOP leaders boost rural hospital fund, rewrite Medicaid provisions to save Trump megabill
Senate Republican leaders substantially increased the size of a rural hospital relief fund and rewrote controversial language freezing health care provider taxes in a late-night bid to keep President Trump's 'big, beautiful bill' on track for a vote Saturday afternoon. Republican leaders increased the size of the proposed rural hospital relief fund from $15 billion to $25 billion, with the money to be distributed over five years. But the proposal falls far short of the $100 billion that Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine), a key swing vote, asked to be allocated to a health care provider relief fund to help rural hospitals, nursing homes and community health centers. The $25 billion rural hospital fund would allocate $10 billion in funding in 2028, another $10 billion in 2029, then $2 billion in 2030, another $2 billion in 2031 and finally $1 billion in 2032. Altogether, it would provide only a fraction of the federal Medicaid funding that states are projected to lose over the next decade because of caps on the use of health care provider funds. For example, Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.) has projected that North Carolina would forfeit $38.9 billion in Medicaid funding from 2026 to 2035 as a result of capping the provider tax rate. Senate Republican leaders cut language establishing a moratorium on new or increased health care provider taxes in states that did not expand Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act, which the parliamentarian found violated the Byrd Rule because it did not produce a substantial budgetary effect, according to a Republican senator briefed on the parliamentarian's ruling. And they delayed the phase-in of a 0.5 percentage point annual reduction of the cap on health care provider taxes in states that expanded Medicaid under the ACA by one year. Instead of states' health care provider taxes being reduced from 6 percent to 5.5 percent in 2027, the half-point reduction in the cap in provider taxes would go into effect in 2028. Republicans hope the changes in language related to health care provider taxes will pass muster with Senate parliamentarian Elizabeth MacDonough. MacDonough ruled on Thursday that the section of the bill capping states' use of health care provider taxes violated the Byrd Rule would not be eligible to pass with a simple-majority vote under the budget reconciliation fast track. Republican senators briefed on the discussions with the parliamentarian said she also objected to the timeline for lowering the cap on health care provider taxes in Medicaid expansion states. GOP lawmakers said they hope the parliamentarian will accept the cap language if it is delayed by a year. Senate Budget Committee Chairman Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) released the revised text of the Senate amendment to the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, which passed the House on May 22. The Senate amendment is 940 pages long and cuts federal Medicaid spending substantially more than the House package. Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) told Republican colleagues at lunch Friday that he plans to hold a vote on proceeding to the package midday Saturday. If the motion to proceed to the bill passes, that would set up 20 hours of debate, equally divided between Republicans and Democrats, on the legislation before a long series of amendment votes known as a vote-a-rama. Senators would vote on final passage of the bill at the end of the vote-a-rama. Trump has set a deadline of July 4 for passing the bill.
The Hill
7 hours ago
- Business
- The Hill
Senate GOP unveils text, changes for massive Trump tax bill
Senate Republicans late Friday night unveiled most of the legislative text for their mammoth tax and spending package as the GOP pushes to pass it in the coming days and have it on President Trump's desk before July 4. The bill, which checked in at 940 pages, was released shortly before the stroke of midnight and included a number of key changes in order to win the OK from both a set of key holdouts and the Senate parliamentarian, who forced the GOP to scrap a number of provisions they had hoped to use as key savings for the package. 'If you like higher taxes, open borders, a weak military and unchecked government spending, this bill is your nightmare,' Senate Budget Committee Chairman Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) said in a statement. 'The Big Beautiful Bill contains all of President Trump's domestic economic priorities. By passing this bill now, we will make our nation more prosperous and secure,' he added. One of the key changes centered on the chamber's planned alterations to the federal cap on Medicaid provider taxes, which marked a deeper cut to the program than the freeze in the initial House-passed measure. The Senate's initial plan was to cut the provider tax from 6 percent to 3.5 percent over a five-year stretch starting in fiscal 2027. That cut was pushed back until 2028 after complaints from a number of members, including Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.), who said on Friday night he was a 'no' without changes. Tillis has told members throughout the week that his state is set to lose out on more than $30 billion in funding over the coming years, calling it 'devastating.' The package also included a $25 billion fund for rural hospitals amid concerns from numerous GOP moderates that they could be decimated by the provider tax changes without an uptick in funding. Some $20 billion of that spending will take place in fiscal 2028 and 2029 — the first two years of the fund. The initial plan had set that fund at $15 billion. Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine) and others called for $100 billion for that purpose. Finally, changes to the State and Local Tax (SALT) deduction cap were included. The planned $40,000 deduction cap that House members hailing from high-tax states stuck in the final bill, though it will only last for five years. The cap would then drop to $10,000 for the following five years. One thing not fully included is the Finance Committee's full updated language as it awaits final rulings from the parliamentarian before a GOP leaders move to kick off floor consideration later on Saturday.
USA Today
21 hours ago
- Business
- USA Today
Senate official rules against gun silencer language in Trump's 'big, beautiful bill'
The Senate parliamentarian has ruled numerous aspects of President Donald Trump's priority bill don't comply with special rules. A Senate official continues to pick apart President Donald Trump's priority bill, ruling against including gun silencer deregulation and other measures in the legislation as GOP leaders struggle to push it across the finish line. Trump wants to pass his signature legislative proposal – which centers around tax and spending cuts – by July 4, and Senate leadership is working to get the bill finalized and up for a vote soon. Senate Parliamentarian Elizabeth MacDonough has complicated those plans, ruling numerous aspects of it don't comply with the special rules senators are using to advance the bill with a simple majority vote to avoid a potential filibuster. Trump's legislation – which he has dubbed the 'big, beautiful, bill' – has been shrinking as it moves through the Senate. What to know: Why Trump's 'big, beautiful bill' is shrinking in the Senate The parliamentarian earlier ruled against GOP-led efforts to curb environmental regulations, attempts to restrict federal judges' powers, plans to bulk up immigration enforcement and to cut funding from the federal agency launched to protect American consumers after the 2008 financial crisis. The parliamentarian recently ruled that a key Medicaid provision in the bill doesn't comply with the rules, forcing Senate leaders to recalibrate. Republicans are proposing cuts to Medicaid to help offset lost revenue from tax cuts. 'It's a setback. We're gonna have to regroup,' Sen. John Kennedy, R-Louisiana, said June 26 after the ruling. The Medicaid issue has been a thorny one for the GOP, dividing the party. The parliamentarian's decision further complicates the debate, prompting some Republicans to lash out and call for her to be overruled. The parliamentarian's latest ruling came on June 26, when she determined that the legislation can't include language on gun silencers, private school vouchers, exempting certain private colleges from a tax on endowments and other measures, according to Sen. Jeff Merkley, the Senate Budget Committee's top Democrat. Lawmakers wanted to eliminate a $200 tax on gun silencers and remove a requirement for gun owners to register their silencers. Rep. Greg Steube, R-Florida, criticized the parliamentarian after the Medicaid ruling. "The Senate Parliamentarian is not elected," Steube wrote on social media. "She is not accountable to the American people. Yet she holds veto power over legislation supported by millions of voters." Sen. Lindsey Graham said the legislation is still on track. 'We're going to pass this bill and I think get it on the president's desk before July the 4th,' Graham said. 'We're doing some workarounds with the parliamentarian rulings. Some of them we can fix, some of them we can't, but we're going to press on.' Trump held an event at the White House June 26 to push for the bill's passage. The president complained about GOP lawmakers who have threatened to vote against the legislation. "I shouldn't say this, but we don't want to have grandstanders where one or two people raise their hand, 'we'll vote no.' And they do it to grandstand,' he said. 'Not good people. They know who I'm talking about. We don't need grandstanders.' Contributing: Savannah Kuchar, Riley Beggin
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Senate referee rejects key Medicaid cuts in Trump's ‘big, beautiful bill'
Senate Parliamentarian Elizabeth MacDonough has rejected key Medicaid provisions in the Senate GOP megabill, a ruling that appears to strike a major blow to Republicans' strategy for cutting federal spending. The Senate's referee rejected a plan to cap states' use of health care provider taxes to collect more federal Medicaid funding, a proposal that would have generated hundreds of billions of dollars in savings to offset the cost of making President Trump's corporate tax cuts permanent, according to a Democratic summary of the parliamentarian's ruling. The decision could force Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) to reconsider his plan to bring the Senate bill up for a vote this week. The cap on health care provider taxes in both states that expanded Medicaid and did not expand Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act was projected to save hundreds of billions of dollars over the next 10 years, but it would have forced states to shoulder substantially more of the cost for Medicaid coverage. The provision generated strong pushback from several Senate Republicans, including Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.), Susan Collins (R-Maine), Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) and Jerry Moran (R-Kan.), who warned deep cuts to federal Medicaid spending could cause dozens of rural hospitals in their states to close. Hawley and Collins declined to say Wednesday whether they would vote to proceed to the bill unless Senate Republican leaders came up with a plan to save rural hospitals from bankruptcy. Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.), the ranking Democratic on the Senate Budget Committee, hailed the ruling. 'Democrats are fighting back against Republicans' plans to gut Medicaid, dismantle the Affordable Care Act, and kick kids, veterans, seniors, and folks with disabilities off of their health insurance – all to fund tax breaks for billionaires,' Merkley said in a statement. 'Republicans are scrambling to rewrite parts of this bill to continue advancing their families lose, and billionaires win agenda, but Democrats stand ready to fully scrutinize any changes and ensure the Byrd Rule is enforced,' he said. The parliamentarian ruled that Sect. 71120 of the bill covering health care provider taxes violates the Byrd Rule, which determines what legislation is eligible to pass the Senate with a simple-majority vote on the budget reconciliation fast track. Republicans could get around the parliamentarian's rulings by holding a simple-majority vote on the floor to establish a new precedent, expanding the scope of what is eligible under reconciliation. Or they could attempt to rewrite the cap on health care provider taxes in a way that it meets the parliamentarian's approval. But the parliamentarian's decision appears to be a significant setback that could delay a vote on the bill. Thune told reporters Thursday that GOP leaders weren't certain how the parliamentarian would decide the controversial provisions but emphasized that Republicans will not attempt to overrule her advice. 'That would not be a good outcome for getting a bill done,' he said. Thune argued that there are still significant Medicaid savings in the legislation, despite the parliamentarian's ruling against the biggest spending cut in the package. 'We were obviously trying to get as much in terms of savings as we could. We pushed hard to try and achieve that and we knew that it was going to be an interesting conversation and we didn't know for sure how she was going to come down on it,' he said. 'There are things we can do, there are other ways of getting to that same outcome. We may not have everything that we wanted in terms of the provider tax reforms but if we can get most of the reforms there, get the savings that come with it — this is all about saving the taxpayers money,' he added. A Republican source familiar with the parliamentarian's ruling, however, pushed back on claims that it would force GOP leaders to pull a key pay-for from the bill. 'We'll continue our work and find a solution to achieve the desired results,' the source said. 'This is not as fatal as Dems are portraying it to be.' The parliamentarian also rejected an array of other Republican provisions in the GOP bill to restrict Medicare and Medicaid coverage of immigrants who are not citizens, a top priority of Senate and House conservatives. Specifically, MacDonough ruled against a section of the Senate bill to revoke Medicare eligibility for many immigrants who are not citizens, including refugees, asylum seekers and people in the country with 'temporary protected status.' The proposal would bar refugees and asylum-seekers from enrolling in Medicare even if they have sufficient work history, pay into the Medicare program and meet age and disability requirements. In addition, she rejected a section of the bill to prohibit the federal funding of Medicaid and the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) for adults and kids whose citizenship or immigration status cannot be immediately verified, language that would override the existing 90-day 'reasonable opportunity period' allowing states to provide coverage while they verify a patient's immigration status. The parliamentarian rejected a section that would lower the Federal Medical Assistance Percentage grant from 90 percent to 80 percent for states that use their own funds to provide Medicaid coverage to immigrants in the country illegally. It would apply to states that expanded Medicaid coverage under the Affordable Care Act (ACA). MacDonough also ruled against a provision prohibiting federal Medicaid and CHIP funding for gender-affirming medical care. The decisions prompted a furious reaction from Alabama Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R), who called on Thune to fire the parliamentarian ASAP. 'The WOKE Senate Parliamentarian, who was appointed by Harry Reid and advised Al Gore, just STRUCK DOWN a provision BANNING illegals from stealing Medicaid from American citizens. This is a perfect example of why Americans hate THE SWAMP,' Tuberville posted on X, the social media site. 'Unelected bureaucrats think they know better than U.S. Congressmen who are elected BY THE PEOPLE. Her job is not to push a woke agenda. THE SENATE PARLIAMENTARIAN SHOULD BE FIRED ASAP,' he said. Senate Republicans are using budget reconciliation rules to pass Trump's agenda though the Senate with a simple-majority vote and avoid a Democratic filibuster. The parliamentarian's job is to interpret the Byrd Rule, a multi-part test for passing legislation on the reconciliation fast-track. Legislation eligible for protection from the filibuster must be primarily budgetary in nature and proposals that are more policy-oriented don't pass the test. Republican Sen. John Kennedy (La.) told reporters Thursday that he doesn't think the GOP leadership would attempt to oust the MacDonough from the parliamentarian's office, asserting that Republicans 'respect' her rulings. 'I don't think that will happen,' he said. 'We all have respect for the parliamentarian. I think that she's very fair and I don't think that she should be fired nor do I think she will be fired.' Updated at 12:47 p.m. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
