House Republicans scrapped a vote to advance President Donald Trump’s agenda after it was clear Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) did not have the GOP support needed to pass it on Wednesday night.
After huddling with a band of fiscal hawks who want a guarantee on deeper spending cuts, Johnson emerged from the meeting telling reporters they will aim to try again on Thursday.
“We have a small subset of members who weren’t totally satisfied with the product as it stands,” the speaker said. “So, we’re going to talk about maybe going to conference with the Senate or adding an amendment, but we’re going to make that decision. We are going to continue to move forward.”
The delay is a blow to Trump, who one day earlier demanded that Republicans “close your eyes” and vote for the measure, which allows committees to begin crafting his tax, border, and energy legislation. Several Republicans refused to back down and support the bill as deficit hawks remain concerned the Senate will not live up to the $2 trillion in cuts hard-liners brokered with House GOP leadership.