House GOP's parting message for Senate on reconciliation
Add Axios as your preferred source to
see more of our stories on Google.
Leader John Thune at the Capitol on July 21. Photo: Finn Gomez/Getty Images)
House GOP leaders are turning up the heat on Senate Republicans, calling on them to move quickly on the House's $95 billion reconciliation package despite resistance from Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.).
Why it matters: Before they split town, House leaders left some instructions for their Senate colleagues.
- "The Senate needs to move on reconciliation before November, and I think the pressure from the American people is going to be unbearable if they refuse to act," NRCC Chair Richard Hudson (R-N.C.) told Axios on Thursday.
- "For the Senate to sit on their hands and do nothing, I think, will be unsustainable."
Driving the news: Thune poured cold water on the House's timeline, telling reporters this week that he plans to wait until government funding is resolved before taking up the budget resolution.
- The reconciliation measure would give billions for the war in Iran, farm assistance and include components of the SAVE America Act.
House Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-La.) told Axios in a pen-and-pad session Thursday that he expects the White House to ramp up pressure on the Senate.
- "They can say all day long, you know, 'It's going to be hard.' Everything's hard. Give me a lecture about how hard things are. That's what I do every day. They've got to figure out a way to get it done," Scalise told Axios of his colleagues in the Senate.
- Scalise said the reconciliation package — because it only requires a simple majority — means Senate Republicans won't have the "excuse of the filibuster" to avoid passing the SAVE Act.
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said Trump's "patience is running out" with Thune during a press briefing Thursday when asked about SAVE.
- "Well, maybe she or somebody else ought to get on the phone and get the votes," Thune told reporters when asked about the comments.
Between the lines: Thune has become a favorite target of House conservatives, who have spent months trying to shame him into taking up the SAVE Act.
- Thune has repeatedly said he doesn't have the votes.
- "He seems to be doing his best to try to pretend he's working on the SAVE America Act while not working on the SAVE America Act," Rep. Michael Cloud (R-Texas) told Axios.
