Senate Republicans Push Through Budget Plan for Trump's Immigration Agenda

Senate Republicans recently pushed through a $340 billion budget plan early Friday morning, after a grueling all-night session. This move was met with strong opposition from Democrats, who tried to halt the process with numerous amendments. The vote was largely along party lines, with 52 Republicans voting in favor and 48 Democrats, along with one Republican, voting against. The budget plan is seen as a crucial step towards funding President Trump's immigration agenda, which includes mass deportations and border security. Senate Budget Committee chair Lindsey Graham highlighted that the administration's deportation operations are running out of money and need more funding from Congress. Democrats, despite their efforts, couldn't stop the process and instead used the debate to force Republicans into potentially awkward votes, such as blocking tax breaks for billionaires. The budget plan is part of a broader effort to extend $4. 5 trillion in tax breaks and other priorities. The White House is open to the Senate's strategy of working on the border package first, then turning to tax cuts later this year. The budget resolution is a framework that sends instructions to various Senate committees to hammer out the details. Everything will eventually be assembled in another package, with another vote-a-rama down the road. The Republican Senate package would allow up to $175 billion to be spent on border security, including money for mass deportation operations and building the U. S. -Mexico border wall, in addition to a $150 billion boost to the Pentagon and about $20 billion for the Coast Guard. Republicans insist the whole thing will be paid for, rather than piled onto debt, with potential spending cuts and new revenues. The committees are expected to consider rolling back the Biden administration’s methane emissions fee, which was approved by Democrats as part of climate change strategies in the Inflation Reduction Act, and hoping to draw new revenue from energy leases as they aim to spur domestic energy production. One amendment that was accepted after several hours of debate was actually a Republican effort to fend off criticism that the package would be paid for by cutting safety net programs. The amendment from Sen. Dan Sullivan, R-Alaska, said Medicaid and Medicare would be strengthened during the budget process. Democrats brought a slew of amendments, including votes to prevent tax breaks for billionaires. Democrats argue that the GOP tax cuts approved in 2017 flowed to the wealthiest Americans, and extending them as Trump wants Congress to do later this year would prolong the giveaway. Even though the billionaire amendments failed, they picked up some Republican support. Sen. Susan Collins of Maine voted for several of them, and Sen. Josh Hawley of Missouri voted for another. The budget resolution is setting up what’s called the reconciliation process, which used to be rare, but is now the tool often used to pass big bills on party-line votes when one party has control of the White House and Congress, as Republicans do now. But Republicans are arguing with themselves over how to proceed. The House is marching ahead on its “big, beautiful bill, ” believing they have one chance to get it right. The Senate views its two-bill strategy as more practical, delivering on border security first, then turning to taxes later.