House Speaker Mike Johnson said Sunday that Republicans are still “on track” to pass the “One Big Beautiful Bill Act” by the “end of the week,” after opposition from some GOP hard-liners and moderates kept the measure from advancing on Friday.
“This is a big thing. We cannot fail, and we’ll get it done for the American people,” Johnson told “Fox News Sunday.”
The speaker’s comments come as the House Budget Committee plans to reconvene at 10 p.m. Sunday to vote to advance the bill encompassing President Donald Trump’s agenda — a necessary step toward putting the package on the House floor for a vote later this week before the Memorial Day deadline.
If the Budget Committee clears the package, Johnson said the Rules Committee will hold its meeting midweek, teeing up a vote on the floor by the end of the week.
Key components of the bill look to provide major tax breaks by cutting spending elsewhere, including hundreds of billions in cuts to Medicaid.
A group of Budget Committee hard-liners on Friday voted to block the package from moving forward — partly over concerns with a starting date for Medicaid work requirements — defying Trump and Republican leaders. As the legislation is currently written, Medicaid requirements take effect in 2029. However, conservatives are pushing for the requirements to start much earlier, as soon as 2027.
“Some of the states have — it takes them some time. We’ve learned in this process to change their systems and to make sure that these stringent requirements that we will put on that to eliminate fraud, waste and abuse, can actually be implemented. So, we’re working with them [hardliners] to make sure what the earliest possible date is to put into law something that will actually be useful. I think we’ve got to compromise on that. I think we’ll work it out,” Johnson claimed.
What about the Senate?
Johnson said both chambers have been working in “close coordination” and hopes the Senate won’t alter the House bill.
“The package that we send over there will be one that was very carefully negotiated and delicately balanced, and we hope that they [Senate] don’t make many modifications to it, because that will ensure its passage quickly,” he said.
Johnson added that Congress must pass the package by July 4, especially given the mid-July “deadline” to address the debt limit to avoid a default.
“We’ve got to get this done and get it to the president’s desk by that big celebration on Independence Day. And I’m convinced that we can,” he added.
Reaction to Moody’s downgrade over debt
On Friday, Moody’s Ratings downgraded the U.S. government from a gold-standard Aaa to Aa1 rating, citing its failure to stop a rising tide of debt.
Moody’s is the last of the three major rating agencies to lower the federal government’s credit. Standard & Poor’s downgraded in 2011 and Fitch Ratings followed in 2023.
“Moody’s is not incorrect, but that’s why that emphasizes the very need for the legislation we’re talking about, historic spending cuts. I mean, this will help to change the trajectory for the U.S. economy and send that message of stability to our allies and even our enemies around the world,” Johnson said. “President Trump’s “one big, beautiful bill” will be passed, and that will be the key to turning this thing around. We have to get this done, and it just shows more of the urgency of why we’re doing exactly what we’re doing with the legislation.”
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