The Senate is still eyeing a Saturday procedural vote to advance President Trump’s “big, beautiful bill” after Democrats announced they will immediately seek to delay its final passage.
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) will force the Senate clerk to read the bill in its entirety, a procedural act that will take about 12 hours.
Meanwhile, Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) on Friday noted that the voting schedule would be subject to change and called the initial vote “aspirational” as internal squabbles and parliamentarian rulings cast doubt on its passage ahead of a self-imposed July 4 deadline.
A number of Senate Republicans, including Sens. Thom Tillis (N.C.), Ron Johnson (Wis.) and Rand Paul (Ky.), have already warned that they will either vote against moving the bill forward or its final passage. Thune can only afford to lose three votes.
Earlier on Saturday, Missouri Sen. Josh Hawley (R) became the first GOP holdout to announce he will back the latest form of the bill despite previously expressing concern about deep cuts to Medicaid. Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine) said she will vote for the measure to proceed, but said she will propose several amendments to change the bill.
At the White House, Trump opted to stay in Washington to focus on helping the GOP megabill get closer to the finish line.
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