Trump Budget Bill Hits Rocks in House GOP as Rebels Balk at Senate Version
April 7, 2025 — President Donald Trump’s ambitious budget bill, a cornerstone of his second-term agenda, has slammed into a wall of resistance within his own party, as House Republicans grapple with deep divisions over the Senate’s version of the plan. The legislation, which promises to extend the 2017 tax cuts, fund mass deportations, and boost military spending, cleared the Senate on Saturday in a 51-48 vote after a marathon “vote-a-rama.” But in the House, where Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) commands a razor-thin 218-215 majority, a growing rebellion threatens to derail Trump’s vision of “one big, beautiful bill.”
The Senate blueprint, unveiled last week by Budget Committee Chairman Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), authorizes $7 trillion in tax cuts over a decade—including $1.5 trillion for new breaks like no taxes on tips—and a $5 trillion debt ceiling hike, offset by just $4 billion in specified spending cuts. It’s a compromise that Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) hailed as a “first step” to enact Trump’s priorities on border security, defense, and energy. Yet House GOP hardliners, who passed their own $4.5 trillion tax-cut plan in February with $2 trillion in cuts, are crying foul, accusing the Senate of fiscal cowardice and jeopardizing the party’s mandate.
House Rebels Dig In
The revolt erupted Monday morning when a dozen House committee chairs, joined by Johnson, Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-La.), Majority Whip Tom Emmer (R-Minn.), and Conference Chair Lisa McClain (R-Mich.), issued a joint statement urging the Senate to adopt the House version. “We took the first step weeks ago, and we look forward to the Senate joining us to enact President Trump’s full agenda as quickly as possible,” they wrote, framing it as a test of GOP unity post-November’s electoral sweep. But within hours, conservative firebrands like Rep. Scott Perry (R-Pa.) of the Freedom Caucus shot back, demanding a 2-to-1 spending-cut-to-new-spending ratio—a threshold the Senate plan nowhere near meets.
“Vague promises won’t cut it,” Perry told reporters, slamming the Senate’s $4 billion cut as “a floor that’s more like a trapdoor.” He insisted on returning to pre-pandemic 2019 spending levels, a stance echoed by Rep. Tim Burchett (R-Tenn.), who flipped to “yes” on the House plan only after Trump’s personal lobbying in February. “The Senate’s playing games while we’re drowning in debt,” Burchett said, reflecting a broader unease among fiscal hawks who see the $5 trillion debt hike as a betrayal of conservative principles.
Senate Stands Firm
Senate Republicans, fresh off their longest work stretch in 15 years, aren’t budging. A GOP aide told Fox News the Senate has been “actively engaged” in crafting a viable package for months, passing its initial resolution in February before the House acted. Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wis.), a vocal critic of the House’s one-bill strategy, doubled down Monday, telling Fox News Digital, “Until we seriously address out-of-control spending, I won’t support another budget resolution—the House’s doesn’t do that.” Johnson and allies like Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.), who voted against the Senate plan with Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine), argue their approach—lowballing cuts upfront for flexibility—avoids boxing in the final bill.
Trump, who met with Senate Finance Committee Republicans last week, has softened his earlier full-throated backing of the House plan. His Wednesday Truth Social post praised the Senate deal as giving “the tools we need” for tax cuts, spending reductions, and border security, suggesting a pragmatic pivot as the chambers feud. Yet his silence on the rebels’ demands has left Johnson scrambling to hold his fractious caucus together, with moderates like Rep. Nicole Malliotakis (R-N.Y.) wary of Medicaid cuts rumored to lurk in the House’s $880 billion savings target.
A High-Stakes Standoff
The impasse threatens to delay Trump’s legislative kickoff as markets tumble under his tariff rollout—a 34% levy on China and 10% on all imports sparking a $5 trillion S&P 500 wipeout. Reconciliation, the budget tool bypassing the Senate’s 60-vote filibuster, requires both chambers to align on a single resolution—a unity elusive as ever. House conservatives warn that without steeper cuts, they’ll tank the Senate version, while Senate leaders hint at forging ahead with a fallback if Johnson can’t deliver.
“This isn’t a negotiation—it’s a mandate,” Scalise insisted Monday, but Democrats, led by Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.), are pouncing on the chaos. “Republicans are running full speed to gut vital programs for billionaires’ tax breaks,” Schumer said, eyeing political leverage as the debt ceiling looms. With the House eyeing a vote next week and the Senate dug in, Trump’s “big, beautiful bill” hangs in limbo—its fate resting on whether GOP rebels bend or break. For now, the rocks in the House threaten to capsize his economic revolution before it sails.
