U.S. House of Representatives Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) looks on, after President Donald Trump delivered remarks on tariffs, in the Rose Garden at the White House in Washington, D.C., U.S., April 2, 2025.
Leah Millis | Reuters
House Speaker Mike Johnson expressed optimism that the budget bill that failed to exit committee Friday would still reach the House floor before Memorial Day as lawmakers prepare to vote again at 10 p.m. ET Sunday night.
“We’re working around the clock to deliver this nation-shaping legislation for the American people as soon as possible,” Johnson said in an appearance on “Fox News Sunday,” as he stressed the importance of the timeline for the “historic” bill.
“The budget committee will reconvene this evening they’ll get that through the committee and the plan is to move that to the rules committee by midweek and to the House floor by the end of the week so that we meet … our original Memorial Day deadline.”
In a Truth Social post Friday, President Donald Trump said lawmakers “MUST UNITE, behind ‘THE ONE BIG BEAUTIFUL BILL.’ But members of the GOP-led House Budget Committee voted 16-21 against passing the multitrillion dollar legislation. Five Republicans joined Democrats to vote against the bill, with Representatives Ralph Norman of South Carolina and Chip Roy of Texas specifically calling out concerns about Medicaid requirements and spending.
On Wednesday, Norman posted on X that, “Delaying work requirements for able-bodied adults on Medicaid isn’t ‘progress.’ It’s fiscally irresponsible and another sad excuse for the swamp!!”
“We are writing checks we cannot cash and our children are gonna pay the price,” Roy said to the press Friday.
“I appreciate Chip and Ralph,” Johnson said Sunday, largely blaming potential delays in enforcing new eligibility requirements on states’ abilities to implement changes in their systems.
Asked about the possibility of resistance in the Senate, where GOP Senator Ron Johnson of Wisconsin has referred to the bill as “the Titanic,” Johnson said he has met regularly with Senate Majority Leader John Thune to ensure swift passage.
“There’s no surprises, the package we send over there will be one that was very carefully negotiated and delicately balanced and we hope they don’t make many modifications to it,” Johnson said.
In addition to the Memorial Day deadline Johnson has imposed in the House, lawmakers contend with another looming target. “Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said we need to do this by July 4,” Johnson said.
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