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3w ago

Senate GOP Pushes Budget Blueprint to Advance Trump Agenda Amid Internal Divisions

Republican leaders aim to finalize the budget by April 11, but disagreements over Medicaid cuts, tax policy, and spending reductions complicate progress.

Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) speaks with reporters following the Senate Republicans' weekly policy lunch on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., U.S., March 11, 2025.
The U.S. Capitol building is seen in Washington, U.S., December 18, 2023. REUTERS/Elizabeth Frantz
Image
Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., right, takes questions at a news conference in the Capitol on Feb. 19 as Sen. John Barrasso, R-Wyo., looks on.

Overview

  • Senate Republicans are racing to finalize a budget blueprint that supports President Trump's legislative priorities, including tax cuts, border security, and energy reforms.
  • Key disagreements persist within the GOP over Medicaid cuts, the scale of spending reductions, and the use of a 'current policy baseline' to make the 2017 Trump Tax Cuts permanent.
  • Senate Majority Leader John Thune is pushing for a vote this week to meet an April 11 deadline, but procedural hurdles and internal divisions threaten delays.
  • Fiscal hawks demand stronger commitments to deficit reduction, while some senators, including Josh Hawley, oppose Medicaid cuts that could impact low-income Americans.
  • The Senate parliamentarian must approve the controversial 'current policy baseline' tactic, which could obscure the fiscal impact of extending the Trump Tax Cuts.