Overview
- House and Senate Budget chairs, who met Wednesday, began drafting a budget resolution to tee up a second reconciliation bill as Sen. Lindsey Graham said the “train is leaving the station.”
- Rep. Jodey Arrington said Republicans want the package to fund the Iran war effort and reshape DHS and ICE money while using anti-fraud cuts to offset costs, with the White House floating about $200 billion but not yet sending a formal request.
- The plan relies on reconciliation, a process that bypasses the Senate’s 60-vote rule but allows only budget-focused items under the Byrd Rule, which experts say could block most of the SAVE America Act’s voter ID and citizenship-to-vote provisions.
- Arrington projected getting a bill “in play” within roughly 60 days and said Budget Committee members will meet Pentagon officials, as Republicans also weigh ICE funding after Democrats rejected a GOP idea to hold back $5.5 billion from its removal operations unit.
- Leaders urge a tight scope even as some members pitch permitting reform, the REINS Act, or farm aid, with coverage splitting on emphasis as Fox News highlights momentum on defense funding, E&E News flags energy-policy limits, and the Daily Signal spotlights conservative doubts about fitting election rules into reconciliation.