Trump urges Senate GOP to pass $95B budget bill before August break

By Thérèse Boudreaux
The Center Square

President Donald Trump is urging Senate Republicans to approve the House’s $95 billion budget resolution before Congress leaves for the month of August.

After congratulating House Republican leadership and “all those who came together to take this important step” of passing the party-line budget reconciliation blueprint, Trump called on Senate Republicans to follow their lead.

“This will be one of the most consequential Bills in America’s History. Strengthening our powerful Military, providing aid for our Farmers and, most importantly, as much of THE SAVE AMERICA ACT as possible. Our Voters will be extremely happy – And even impressed!,” Trump posted Friday on social media.

“I am asking that the Senate adopt a Budget Resolution, which can pass with a simple Majority, before leaving for the August recess. We are ready to work side-by-side with the Senate to get this done for the American People!,” he added.

Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., however, has so far shown little enthusiasm for expediting a vote on the budget resolution – partially because some Republican senators have already balked at a third unpaid-for reconciliation bill.

The $95 billion budget resolution instructs relevant congressional committees to craft a budget reconciliation bill allocating at most $73 billion for defense spending, $12 billion for farm assistance, and $10 billion to incentivize states to implement policies from a Trump-endorsed voter ID bill, the SAVE America Act.

Budget reconciliation bills can pass the Senate with a simple majority – a majority that Republicans currently hold – only if the content is restricted to debt and deficit-related policies.

That means Republicans could not fully incorporate the SAVE America Act, which mandates that people present proof of citizenship when registering to vote in federal elections and states remove noncitizens from their voter rolls, even if the measure passes and is signed into law.

The $10 billion earmark would likely go toward creating a federal fund incentivizing states to enforce stricter election security measures themselves.

If the Senate doesn’t vote on the budget resolution before leaving town, the chances of a third budget reconciliation bill materializing are slim.

Congress currently faces a backlog of critical legislative priorities, including reauthorizing spending on transportation infrastructure, the Pentagon, and federal farm programs; renewing FISA Section 702 surveillance authority; and funding all branches of the federal government for fiscal year 2027, which begins Oct. 1.