Trump's 'big, beautiful bill' faces crucial hours as Johnson courts Freedom Caucus

The marquee lawsuit successful the run-up to perchance passing the alleged "big, beauteous bill" began astatine 3 p.m. ET arsenic House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) and members of the Freedom Caucus headed to the White House to conscionable with President Donald Trump.

The White House is truly amping up the unit present connected the Freedom Caucus. A White House connection says "The Administration powerfully supports transition of H.R. 1, the One Big Beautiful Bill Act." It adds that "President Trump is committed to keeping his promises, and nonaccomplishment to walk this measure would beryllium the eventual betrayal. If H.R. 1 were presented to the President, helium would motion it into law."

Fox is told that the House GOP brass would similar to walk the measure "today." There is an expanding script that "today" means precise precocious tonight, overnight, oregon the aboriginal hours of time morning. They are banking connected the thought that unit from the president volition unit the Freedom Caucus to ballot "yes." They besides request to supply a fig leafage for the Freedom Caucus truthful they tin exit these negotiations with a "win."

HOUSE FREEDOM CAUCUS HEADING TO WHITE HOUSE AFTER DELAY PLAY ON TRUMP'S ‘BIG, BEAUTIFUL BILL’

Congress is feeling the unit arsenic the Memorial Day deadline to ballot connected Trump's ‘big, beauteous bill’ approaches.  (Al Drago/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

The Freedom Caucus is upset that the SALT Caucus achieved a triumph with an summation successful the deduction for authorities and section taxes. So the Freedom Caucus is asking, "where is our deal?"

We expect House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., to parachute a "manager’s amendment" oregon 2 into the measure astatine the end. This would beryllium introduced earlier the House Rules Committee and made a portion of the bill. The manager’s amendment is fundamentally the last alteration to the bill. The cardinal is to marque definite that it sweetens the measurement successful a mode that it drags the last outstanding votes crossed the decorativeness line.

Here’s the dynamic: House GOP leaders are disquieted astir losing members from an attendance position tomorrow. So they consciousness it’s champion to determination sooner alternatively than later. Also, there’s the imaginable of losing votes the longer this sits open. So Republican leaders privation to fastener this down arsenic soon arsenic possible. That’s wherefore an overnight/early greeting script is precise overmuch successful play close now.

DEMS WARN HOUSE REPUBLICANS WILL PAY PRICE AT BALLOT BOX FOR PASSING TRUMP'S ‘BIG BEAUTIFUL BILL’

Speaker Mike Johnson indispensable navigate his perilously slim bulk to walk President Trump's agenda. (Getty Images/Fox News Digital illustration)

Here are the factual steps which indispensable hap to walk the bill:

– Johnson introduces his manager’s amendment to tweak the measure and tribunal reluctant Republicans to ballot yes.

– The Rules Committee incorporates that amendment into the bill.

– The Rules Committee votes connected the wide "rule" which sends the "new" mentation of the measure – with the changes via the manager’s amendment to the floor.

– The House debates the "rule" to acceptable the array for the existent debate.

– The House indispensable follow the "rule" successful bid to enactment the measure connected the floor. If the Rules Committee fails to nonstop the regularisation to the level oregon if the GOP stumbles successful its effort to get it retired of the Rules Committee, they’re stuck. So these 2 procedural steps are crucial.

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President Donald Trump and Speaker of the House Mike Johnson, R-La., speech with reporters aft a House Republican Conference gathering connected the fund reconciliation measure successful the U.S. Capitol connected Tuesday, May 20, 2025.  (Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)

– The House past debates the measure connected the floor, based connected the crushed rules approved earlier by the rule.

– Then the House goes to final passage.

Those are a batch of steps. But things tin determination precise accelerated erstwhile they get these things successful spot successful the House. That’s wherefore Republican leaders privation the unit of the president to unit the contented successful the adjacent 12 to 24 hours.

That said, determination is simply a chiseled anticipation of this unfolding overnight oregon successful the wee hours of the greeting connected Thursday.

There is besides a anticipation that this stalls, and we are staring astatine a Thursday night/wee hours of Friday scenario, too.