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Senate Republicans have revealed their long-awaited version of President Donald Trump’s “big, beautiful bill,” although its survival is not guaranteed.
Senate Budget Committee Chair Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., disclosed the combined text of the massive bill late Friday night.
The final version from the upper chamber is the result of approximately a month-long effort to adapt the House GOP’s version of the bill. This extensive package includes various components from ten Senate committees. A simple procedural step must be cleared to initiate the final passage countdown.
When this will occur remains uncertain. Senate Republicans exited their lunch on Friday expecting that a vote could be scheduled as early as noon on Saturday.
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President Donald Trump on June 18, 2025. (BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI/AFP via Getty Images)
Sen. John Kennedy, R-La., informed that he had “strongly encouraged” Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., to schedule the bill for a vote Saturday afternoon.
“If you’re unhappy with that, you’re welcome to fill out a hurt feelings report, and we will review it carefully later,” Kennedy stated. “But in the meantime, it’s time to start voting.”
However, Senate Republicans’ attempts to assert their influence on the package and modify already contentious policy changes in the House GOP’s proposal could jeopardize the bill and prevent Thune’s ambitious timeline to deliver it to Trump by the July 4 deadline.
Nonetheless, Thune has insisted that lawmakers will remain on track to deliver the bill to Trump by Independence Day.
When asked if he had the votes to proceed, Thune replied, “we’ll find out tomorrow.”
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The bill’s journey faced obstacles beyond lawmakers. The Senate parliamentarian determined that several GOP-written provisions did not comply with Senate rules.
Any element in the “big, beautiful bill” must align with the Byrd Rule, which regulates the budget reconciliation process, enabling the majority party to push legislation through the Senate while bypassing the 60-vote filibuster requirement.
Senate Majority Leader John Thune speaks during a news conference following the weekly Senate Republican policy luncheon at the U.S. Capitol on June 17, 2025, in Washington. (Getty Images)
This prompted lawmakers to revisit a number of policy adjustments, including alterations to the Medicaid provider tax rate, food benefit cost-sharing, and others.
Republican leaders, the White House, and various factions within the Senate and House GOP have convened to find common ground on other contentious issues, such as modifying the caps on state and local tax (SALT) deductions.
While the contentious change to the Medicaid provider tax rate largely remains unchanged, a $25 billion fund for rural hospital stabilization has been added to the bill to appeal to potential holdouts concerned that the rate change could lead to the closure of rural hospitals nationwide.
Regarding SALT, a new plan appears to have emerged, retaining the $40,000 cap from the House’s bill and reducing it back to $10,000 after five years.
However, Senate Republicans must be on board at this stage. Sen. Markwayne Mullin, R-Okla., has acted as a mediator in this negotiation, expressing uncertainty if his colleagues “love it.”
“But I think, as I’ve said before, I want to ensure we have enough for people to vote for rather than against,” he mentioned.
Despite this, a myriad of other smaller issues and concerns regarding the extent of spending cuts in the bill have conservatives and moderates in both the House and Senate expressing their intentions to vote against it.
Republican leaders are committed to completing the massive package and are betting that some lawmakers opposing it will yield to pressure from the White House and the desire to leave Washington for a brief break.
Once a motion to proceed is passed, requiring just a simple majority, 20 hours of debate will commence, evenly divided between both sides.
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House Speaker Mike Johnson speaks during a news conference at the U.S. Capitol Building on April 1, 2025, in Washington. (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)
Democratic lawmakers are expected to utilize their full 10 hours, while Republicans will likely use significantly less time. Following this, the “vote-a-rama” process will commence, allowing lawmakers to propose numerous amendments to the bill. Democrats are likely to introduce messaging amendments aimed at prolonging the process without actually passing.
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Once these stages are completed, a final vote will be conducted. If successful, the “big, beautiful bill” will return to the House, where House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., will need to rally support from dissenters once more. The bill barely advanced last month, passing by only a single vote margin.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent emphasized the necessity of timely enactment of the bill. He engaged with Senate Republicans during their closed-door lunch, conveying that passing the extensive tax package would substantially benefit businesses amid the president’s tariffs.
“We need certainty,” he asserted. “Having the bill signed by July 4 will provide critical tax certainty and I believe will stimulate the economy in the third quarter.”
