Party leaders have been frantically negotiating with groups of lawmakers as House Speaker Mike Johnson strives to meet a self-imposed deadline of passing the package through the House before Congress goes on break for Memorial Day at the end of this week.
Republican leaders faced an embarrassing setback when a key committee initially rejected the legislation on Friday as hardliners sought deeper cuts, but were able win the panel’s approval two days later after making concessions to the fiscal conservatives.Trump has expressed frustration with the infighting among members of his party, calling those opposing the bill “grandstanders” and urging lawmakers to stop talking and start voting on the legislation.
During a Rose Garden ceremony at the White House on Monday to sign legislation to force social media companies to remove non-consensual sharing of sexually explicit images, he lamented that his tax bill likely won’t get the same overwhelming support from lawmakers. The Take It Down Act passed the House with a 409-2 vote and the Senate by unanimous consent — margins that are incredibly rare in the narrowly divided Congress.
“I wish we could get that vote on some other things,” Trump said. “We have another bill coming up. Do you think we’ll get that vote? Maybe not. We should, but we probably won’t.”
Still, some members remain dug in. “I’m just not sure if there’s anything the president could tell me tomorrow that would change my mind at this point,” Representative Andy Harris, who chairs the ultra-conservative House Freedom Caucus, told reporters on Monday. “I’m a hard no.”
First Published: May 20, 2025 7:35 AM IS
