Illustration: Shoshana Gordon/Axios
The House and Senate are on a collision course over Medicaid cuts as the House looks to take up the Senate-adopted budget resolution this week.
Why it matters: The blueprint the Senate adopted early Saturday left flexibility for figuring out the extent of cuts later on, but hardliners in the House want to lock in firm targets for spending cuts now.
What they're saying: Republican senators have made clear their concerns about Medicaid cuts.
- "Tonight I spoke for a good bit with President Trump about Medicaid — he told me the House will NOT cut Medicaid benefits and the Senate will NOT cut Medicaid benefits and he won't sign any benefit cuts," Sen. Josh Hawley wrote on X on Thursday. "I hope congressional leadership will get the message."
- Sen. Lisa Murkowski also wrote on X that despite her voting for the budget resolution, it had "serious shortcomings." These included the adoption of the current policy baseline and that it still had the instruction for finding $880 billion in savings from House Energy and Commerce "that would require significant cuts to Medicaid."
Zoom in: Hawley even joined with Democratic Sen. Ron Wyden on an amendment to strike that Energy and Commerce instruction.
- It narrowly failed, with Hawley, Murkowski and Sen. Susan Collins the only Republicans to break ranks and vote for it.
What's next: The House is supposed to take up the Senate's amendments to the budget resolution this week, perhaps Wednesday, but it is not clear yet whether there are enough votes for adoption.
- Several fiscal conservatives have already come out against the bill, stating that there aren't enough funding cuts to offset the tax extensions, as well as concerns about using the current policy baseline scoring tactic.
- Some explicitly pointed to the need for more savings from Medicaid.
- Rep. Chip Roy wrote that he wants to "pump the brakes on runaway spending and to achieve critical reforms to badly broken Medicaid, food stamp, and welfare programs currently being abused to subsidize illegals, the able-bodied, and blue states."
- Even House Budget Chair Jodey Arrington blasted the Senate's measure over the weekend, saying it was "unserious and disappointing," because of the way it creates $5.8 trillion in new costs and requires only $4 billion in cuts.
With two new House members sworn in last week to fill vacant Florida congressional seats, the margin is slightly better for GOP leadership.
- But four GOP defections could still sink the measure, assuming all House Democrats are opposed.
- Trump may have to step in again and lean on holdout members, the way he did for both the House's initial budget resolution and the yearlong continuing resolution.
- If the Senate amendments are adopted, lawmakers can head out for a two-week recess starting next week.
