As the sun rose over another steamy day in Washington on Tuesday, senators donned fluffy blankets and pullover sweatshirts to gird against the frigid temperatures inside the United States Senate chamber.
They had been there all night debating and voting on consequential legislation carrying President Trump’s domestic agenda, including large tax reductions and cuts to social programs that could affect Americans’ lives and the nation’s fiscal health for years to come. But as the debate rolled into a third day, the bleary-eyed lawmakers could barely keep track of what they were doing.
Not long after 7 a.m., Senator John Kennedy, Republican of Louisiana, said he would withdraw an amendment he had offered — “whatever the hell the number was,” he added with a chuckle, drawing laughter from his equally exhausted colleagues.
The Senate began its so-called vote-a-rama, a marathon of rapid-fire votes that precedes the passage of budget-related measures, on Monday morning around 9:30. More than 45 votes later, dawn broke on Tuesday with no definitive word of when senators would vote on final passage of the measure — though they had passed a different milestone, setting a record for the most active such vote-a-thon in history. By noon, they had passed the measure.
It came after Senator John Thune, Republican of South Dakota and the majority leader, worked through the night to secure enough votes from his party to pass its 940-page bill and send the legislation to the House in time to deliver it to Mr. Trump by July 4, as the president has demanded. He appeared on the floor in the early morning hours sipping a red beverage — reportedly an Emergen-C immune booster — drawing a challenge from Democrats who charged him with violating the Senate rule that the only permissible drinks on the floor are water or milk.
As Mr. Thune twisted the arms of G.O.P. holdouts, members of the Senate, where the average age is more than 65, stayed awake keeping the hours and work habits of college students — and in some cases, their eating habits, too.
They munched on Chinese food overnight, and when morning came ordered up McDonald’s breakfast sandwiches. Reporters awaiting word of what key Republican holdouts would decide and when a final vote would unfold fell into fitful naps on couches in the press gallery above the Senate floor. Senate pages rolled a cart of large coffees off the elevator and into the Senate cloakroom where haggard senators wandered in to refuel.
As they struggled to stay awake, senators were considering the weightiest of matters: a bill that is projected to slash taxes by $4.5 trillion while substantially boosting funding for the military and an anti-immigration crackdown; add about $3.3 trillion to the already soaring deficit; slash nearly $1 trillion from Medicaid; and cause an estimated 11.8 million people to lose health insurance.
Just before dawn, Senators Deb Fischer of Nebraska and Bill Hagerty of Tennessee, both Republicans, stepped out onto the steps of the Capitol to snap a photo of the purpling sky.
As morning broke, cars parked outside the Capitol waited to whisk senators to their flights home to salvage what was left of their vacations and celebrate Independence Day.
“Oh my God — I just want to go home,” lamented Senator John Fetterman, Democrat of Pennsylvania, complaining to reporters that he had already missed his family’s entire trip to the beach. He added that he planned to vote “no” on the Republican bill, as all Democrats were expected to. Senator Jeanne Shaheen, Democrat of New Hampshire, could be heard on the Senate floor wondering aloud to a colleague whether she could catch a later flight.
Senator Thom Tillis of North Carolina, one of two Republicans who had already said they would oppose the bill, blew a kiss and waved to a C-SPAN camera trained on the Senate floor. He later explained that he gestures had been for his grandchildren, who had asked, “What if Papa misses all the days” of his family vacation?
Senator Markwayne Mullin, Republican of Oklahoma, killed time overnight taking his social media followers on a “night at the Capitol” tour. He posted videos of tucked-away corners of the building, sharing his takes on everything from the paintings in the Rotunda to a missing cornerstone laid by George Washington in 1793.
Some senators popped out of the chamber to change clothes. Others slouched deep into their seats, or scrolled glassy-eyed on their phones. At one point, Senator Charles E. Grassley, Republican of Iowa and the president pro tempore, who at 91 is the oldest member of Congress, sat down on the floor of the well of the chamber, elbows resting on his knees, hands clasped.
The Senate chamber was being kept exceedingly cool against the hot humidity of the Washington summer — and perhaps to keep sleep-deprived senators alert. Senator Susan Collins of Maine, one of the handful of Republicans who were holding out against their party’s bill, wore a neon pink pantsuit and heels, but on and off throughout the night she wrapped herself up to her chin in a thick, cream-colored blanket. Senator Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, another key G.O.P. holdout, had a similar one in gray.
Senator Joni Ernst, Republican of Iowa, turned 55 years old as the vote-a-rama dragged into its second day. But as of Tuesday morning, senators had not sung happy birthday inside the chamber, and it was still unclear when they might cast their final votes and go home.
Megan Mineiro is a Times congressional reporter and a member of the 2025-26 Times Fellowship class, a program for early-career journalists.
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