President Donald Trump’s push to pass his sweeping agenda in the Senate faces uncertainty as GOP leaders barrel toward a critical vote.
Over the weekend, a warning shot came from Sen. Thom Tillis of North Carolina, who was one of two senators to oppose advancing Trump’s bill in a key vote Saturday night, along with Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul. Tillis, who was concerned over cuts to Medicaid, announced the following day that he would not seek reelection. And in a fiery floor speech, he said he would withhold his vote “until it’s demonstrated to me that we’ve done our homework.”
Already, outspoken fiscal hawk Paul said Sunday he is planning to vote against the bill. “The bill increases the debt ceiling by $5 trillion,” the Kentucky senator said. “What does that mean? That is an admission that they know they aren’t controlling the deficit. … That doesn’t sound conservative to me, and that’s why I’m a no.”
And Tillis is not the only Republican who opposes proposed cuts to Medicaid. Sens. Lisa Murkowski and Susan Collins have raised concerns, with Collins saying, “If the bill is not further changed, I would be leaning against the bill.”
Collins, a key centrist vote, said Saturday she would vote in favor of the bill in the initial procedural vote, but was clear her support for the initial vote did not determine whether she would back the final version.
Missouri Sen. Josh Hawley — who had raised concerns about the package’s Medicaid provisions, which he feared would shutter rural hospitals — said Saturday he would back the bill in a major win for party leaders.
Ahead of Saturday’s procedural vote, Vice President JD Vance traveled to the Capitol to help Senate Majority Leader John Thune convince remaining holdouts to allow debate on the bill. The vice president could be needed again, acting in his capacity as president of the Senate, to break any tie on a final passage vote.
Thune and Vance huddled in the leadership suite with Sens. Ron Johnson, Mike Lee, Cynthia Lummis and Rick Scott ahead of Saturday’s vote, before all four eventually voted to advance the measure. These senators will all be ones to watch.