Trump's struggle to pass major bill may 'reveal the limits of his power': report

20 May

U.S. President Donald Trump and Speaker of the House Mike Johnson shake hands during a House Republican members conference meeting in Trump National Doral resort, in Miami, Florida, U.S. January 27, 2025.

President Donald Trump held a meeting Tuesday with House Republicans aiming to rally support for his "big, beautiful bill," which is central to his domestic agenda.

However, divisions within the party remained unresolved. Budget conservatives pushed for measures to reduce the deficit, while other GOP members advocated for additions that could raise the bill's overall cost.

An article in Semafor published Tuesday reported that Washington is captivated by a showdown between the determined policy objectives of various Republican factions and the political influence wielded by Trump.

"The GOP is spinning its wheels over the current draft of Trump’s 'big beautiful bill,' which doesn’t do enough for high-tax-state Republicans, doesn’t cut enough for deficit hawks, and goes too far on Medicaid for plenty of others. For Trump, the delay is a buzzkill that could reveal the limits of his power — and a hindrance to scoring the wins he promised on the campaign trail," wrote authors Burgess Everett, Eleanor Mueller, and Kadia Goba.

"Trump usually comes out on top in this type of conflict; he easily overcame opposition to re-electing House Speaker Mike Johnson and passing a stopgap government funding bill. Then the GOP Congress deferred still more of its power to Trump on his Cabinet, his tariffs and his unilateral reshaping of the federal government," they argued.

The authors observed that Trump’s visit to the House on Tuesday had no immediate impact, as he and Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) continue pushing to advance the legislation before the weekend.

Meanwhile, Trump reportedly used the private meeting with House Republicans to warn them against "f--- around with Medicaid." The "big, beautiful bill" includes the most significant Medicaid cuts in U.S. history.

Rep. Andrew Garbarino (R-N.Y.) told Semafor: “Trying to browbeat us in front of the conference, it wasn’t a smart idea."

However, some Republicans viewed Tuesday as a step forward. Rep. Dusty Johnson (R-S.D.) told Semafor that Trump’s speech might bring the party “closer to the finish,” even though he didn’t suggest that “everything is hunky-dory.”

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