The Blubber

The House Budget Committee voted down the bill in a 21-16 vote, with Republican Representatives Chip Roy, Ralph Norman, Josh Brecheen, and Andrew Clyde joining Democrats in opposition. The four conservative holdouts pushed for steeper cuts to Medicaid and other federal programs.

Bills rarely fail at this stage, as committee votes are usually a formality before a bill heads to the full House for consideration.

Negotiations are expected to continue through the weekend, with the committee scheduled to reconvene late Sunday night.

Former President Trump, whose influence has often swayed congressional Republicans, weighed in less than two hours before the vote. He criticized dissenting Republicans and called on them to support the legislation.

“We don’t need ‘GRANDSTANDERS’ in the Republican Party,” Trump posted on social media Friday. “STOP TALKING, AND GET IT DONE! It is time to fix the MESS that Biden and the Democrats gave us. Thank you for your attention to this matter!”

The vote marked a setback for Republicans, revealing how a small group of lawmakers can derail efforts to pass what Trump has described as his “one big, beautiful bill.” The party’s slim majority leaves little room for internal disagreements, and GOP infighting now threatens to derail or delay the bill's passage, which leadership had hoped to achieve next week.

During the committee meeting, the Republican dissenters laid out their demands, including imposing work requirements for able-bodied Medicaid recipients right away instead of waiting until 2029, as the current version proposes. They also called for a quicker rollback of clean energy tax credits.

It’s unclear how Republicans plan to move forward to resolve the impasse and revive the legislation.

“We’re aiming to be back first thing Monday, but I’ll update you over the weekend,” said Budget Committee Chair Jodey Arrington following the vote.

House Majority Leader Steve Scalise, who is working to build consensus among Republicans, said party leaders are in discussions with the Trump team to address the hardliners' proposed changes.