The House of Representatives on Tuesday took the reins of President Donald Trump’s megabill, after the Senate narrowly passed it following days of grueling negotiations and last-minute deals.
Now, Republican Speaker Mike Johnson is staring down an uncertain path for the bill through his chamber, where several members of his conference have already publicly registered their objection to the Senate-approved version of the bill.
The final vote in the Senate was 51-50, and Vice President JD Vance was needed to cast a tie-breaking vote.
“I don’t work for the Senate parliamentarian. I work for the PEOPLE,” Rep. Andy Ogles, R-Tenn., wrote on X Tuesday afternoon.
He called the Senate version of the bill a “dud” and said that he had already filed an amendment to replace it “with the strong House bill we passed weeks ago.”
Rep. Ralph Norman, R-S.C., is also reportedly opposed to the bill, according to Punchbowl.
It was unclear Tuesday afternoon how many more House Republicans were opposed to the latest version of the bill.
Two Republicans, Reps. Thomas Massie of Kentucky and Warren Davidson of Ohio, voted against the House version of the bill in May and are expected to do so again now.
Rep. Andy Harris of Maryland, who chairs the hardline House Freedom Caucus, voted present last time around.
If every sitting member votes, Johnson can lose just three votes in his chamber and still pass the legislation on a party-line vote.
Republicans may also have an attendance issue if they try to hold the vote on Wednesday.
Strong storms across the Washington area Tuesday afternoon forced the cancellation of flights, and some members were unable to fly back to Washington.
House members are not allowed to vote remotely, so if a member is not present in Washington their vote will not be counted
Further complicating Johnson’s efforts is Republicans’ fast-approaching, self-imposed July 4 deadline.
But Trump has softened his tone on the July 4 deadline in recent days.
Still, the bill cannot be sent to Trump’s desk for his signature until the House approves the Senate’s final version of the bill, which has been changed substantially since it passed the House on May 22, by a vote of 215-214.
Ever since then, House Republicans have been sounding the alarm about parts of the Senate package, including deeper cuts to Medicaid and a higher overall price-tag.
The Senate version also includes a $5 trillion increase in the debt ceiling, significantly higher than the $4 trillion hike approved by the House.
According to an analysis by the Congressional Budget Office, the Senate bill could add more than $3.9 trillion to the national debt, another pain point for fiscally conservative House Republicans.
This is developing news. Please check back for updates.
