Trump Gets Backstabbed By GOP House

House Republican leaders are working urgently to bring their conference together behind the sweeping Senate version of President Trump’s legislative package, aiming to deliver it to the president’s desk before the July 4 holiday. But with the party’s slim majority and rising resistance from both moderates and conservatives, that path remains uncertain.

The revised bill, which includes a wide range of domestic policy changes such as tax cuts, new immigration measures, reductions in clean energy incentives, and significant changes to federal health and nutrition programs has left lawmakers divided. Moderate Republicans are raising alarms about expanded Medicaid cuts, while fiscal conservatives are warning about the increase in federal spending and debt.

Rep. Chip Roy of Texas, a prominent voice in the conservative Freedom Caucus, questioned whether the current version of the bill aligns with what the administration originally intended. “If you look at the totality of this, I don’t believe this delivers what the president, what the administration, were working to deliver on,” he said. While acknowledging the White House’s push to get the legislation passed, Roy emphasized that more work remains.

The pushback is creating challenges for Speaker Mike Johnson and House GOP leaders as they attempt to unify their party around Trump’s priorities. With only a few votes to spare, leadership can’t afford many defections. Some members had previously warned they would not support a bill that was further altered in the Senate and now they face a difficult choice: reverse course to give Trump a legislative win or stick to their earlier stance and vote against the final version.

Lawmakers on both sides of the GOP spectrum are feeling the pressure. One moderate Republican jokingly suggested to reporters that missing the vote might be the easiest way out of the bind, illustrating how politically complicated the decision has become.

At the center of the pressure campaign is Trump himself, who is urging Republicans to fall in line and, in some cases, reportedly signaling support for primary challengers to those who oppose the legislation. Rep. Thomas Massie of Kentucky, who voted against the House version and is expected to oppose the Senate version as well, has already drawn the attention of Trump-aligned groups. Sen. Thom Tillis of North Carolina also faced backlash after announcing his opposition and soon after, said he would not run for reelection.

Meanwhile, House Democrats are drawing attention to the bill’s more contentious provisions, particularly the cuts to safety net programs. They’re already preparing campaign attacks aimed at Republicans in vulnerable districts. Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries argued the legislation would raise costs for working families and questioned why any swing-district Republican would vote for it. “This bill won’t make life more affordable for the American people,” Jeffries said. “It will make life more expensive.”

Despite the pressure, the timeline is tight. House leadership has set a goal of passing the bill before Friday. After the Senate approved its version, House GOP leaders issued a joint statement pledging to wrap up their work in time for Independence Day. But Speaker Johnson struck a more cautious tone later in the day, saying, “We’ll see what happens in the next 24 hours.”

Though Johnson acknowledged his frustrations with the Senate’s revisions, he signaled the House may not alter the bill, avoiding a need to send it back to the upper chamber. “I’m not happy with what the Senate did to our product, but we understand this is the process,” he said. “We’ll be working to get all of our members to ‘yes.’”

Still, some lawmakers remain skeptical that the bill can be finalized on schedule. Rep. Marlin Stutzman of Indiana, a member of the Freedom Caucus, said the Senate’s changes including what he described as unacceptable increases in federal debt will make passage in the House difficult. He added that he’s willing to keep working through the holiday if that’s what it takes to improve the bill.