Vought, Braid to Pitch Senate GOP on Megabill
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- Russell Vought and James Braid will address the Senate Republican weekly lunch Wednesday alongside former House Speaker Newt Gingrich, making a three-point pitch to launch reconciliation 3.0 and pass a budget resolution before the August recess
- The proposed budget resolution mirrors the House version passed earlier this month, allocating $73 billion for defense, $12 billion in farm aid, and a $10 billion fund to incentivize states to adopt SAVE America Act election provisions
- The SAVE Act components in the blueprint would require photo ID to vote and proof of citizenship to register — which the White House calls the two most popular SAVE provisions among Republican voters
- Senate Majority Leader John Thune told reporters Tuesday that reconciliation 3.0 will become "a much more comprehensive process that could create instructions to up to a dozen committees," to maximize flexibility under the Byrd rule
- The White House is deliberately not seeking a debt ceiling increase in this package, potentially saving it for a fourth lame-duck bill — a move that also avoids opening Finance Committee jurisdiction to Democratic Medicaid amendments
- Senate GOP leaders have publicly been skeptical that there is the time or votes to pass the package before recess, while President Trump and his team believe it can be done
Why it matters: The White House is asking the Senate to fast-track a $95 billion reconciliation blueprint in roughly two weeks, betting popular items — troop pay, farm aid, and voter ID — can survive Byrd rule scrutiny. The strategic omission of the debt ceiling dodges Democratic Medicaid amendment bait but guarantees another fiscal fight after the midterms.
