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18h ago

Senate Launches Test Vote as Funding Divide Deepens

After passing a $9 billion rescissions package without Democratic support, Senate Republicans must clear a filibuster threshold on the first fiscal 2026 appropriations vote ahead of an October funding deadline.

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Deal Breaker: Office of Management and Budget director Russell Vought admitted the $9 billion in spending clawbacks were just the beginning of dismantling bipartisan fiscal agreements. Here, Vought testifies during a Senate Appropriations Committee hearing on the rescissions package on Capitol Hill, Wednesday, June 25, 2025, in Washington.
Sen. Richard J. Durbin, D-Ill., pictured here on June 5, fears the Trump administration is out to "eliminate the appropriations process."

Overview

  • Senate Majority Leader John Thune scheduled a test vote Tuesday on the military construction and Veterans Affairs funding bill as the first of a dozen fiscal 2026 appropriations measures.
  • Democrats are considering blocking the motion to proceed in protest of last week’s $9 billion partisan rescissions package that bypassed the filibuster and cut foreign aid and public broadcasting.
  • The vote requires 60 votes to end debate, highlighting eroded bipartisan trust and elevating the threat of a partial government shutdown when current funding expires on Oct. 1.
  • President Trump pressed Senate Republicans to cancel or shorten the August recess to confirm 136 pending nominees, intensifying pressure on Senate leaders and exposing intraparty tensions.
  • Lawmakers remain split over reliance on budget reconciliation versus the regular appropriations process, with a senior GOP senator warning of a “real square 50-50” chance of a shutdown if cooperation fails.