FILE PHOTO: Senate Republican leaders hold a press conference following the weekly Senate caucus luncheons on Capitol Hill in Washington, U.S., January 28, 2025. REUTERS/Evelyn Hockstein/File Photo
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Republicans who control the U.S. House of Representatives faced growing internal opposition to their current plan to advance President Donald Trump's tax-cut and border agenda, prompting Speaker Mike Johnson to acknowledge that a planned vote might not happen on Tuesday.
Johnson faced push back from several lawmakers in his 218-215 majority whose support he needs to deliver on Trump's $4.5 trillion tax-cut plan, which would also fund the deportation of migrants living in the U.S. illegally, tighten border security, energy deregulation and military spending.
The tax cuts Trump is seeking would extend breaks passed during his first term in office, his main legislative accomplishment, that are due to expire at the end of this year.
Doubts about House Republicans' unity prompted Senate Republicans to enact their own budget resolution as a Plan B ploy last week: a $340 billion measure that covers Trump's border, defense and energy priorities but leaves the thornier issue of tax policy for later in the year.
A handful of hardline House Republicans have said they oppose a budget blueprint that seeks to cut $2 trillion of spending over ten years to pay for Trump's agenda, with apparent support from billionaire Elon Musk, whose Department of Government Efficiency is targeting government workers and programs.
Adding to Johnson's worries, some of his caucus on Tuesday voiced reluctance to vote for a measure if there was not also agreement on how to fund the government past March 14, when agencies will enter a partial shutdown without congressional action.
"I'm inclined to support it today, but we've got to get to resolution on appropriations. And right now, I'm not getting clarity either out of the administration or out of leadership," said Representative Chip Roy, of Texas, who had voted to move the resolution out of the House Rules Committee on Monday night.
Representative Warren Davidson, an Ohio hardliner who tied support for the budget plan to fiscal 2025 appropriations, was more emphatic: "I am not voting for this ... The problem is the rest of the spending story is on discretionary and there's no plan that's communicated for March 14 yet."
That is just the first deadline facing lawmakers in the coming months. Later this year they will need to act on the federal government's self-imposed debt ceiling or risk triggering catastrophic default on its $36 trillion in debt.
Other Republican hardliners said they opposed the current plan because it did not reduce the government's annual deficit, which ran at $1.8 trillion in the fiscal year ended September 30.
"If the Republican budget passes, the deficit gets worse, not better," Representative Thomas Massie, of Kentucky, one of at least three Republicans who want deeper spending cuts, said on the social media platform X on Monday night.
"That sounds bad," replied Musk, who owns X.
Top House Democrat Hakeem Jeffries told reporters on Tuesday that none of his members will vote for the measure.
"House Democrats will not provide a single vote to this reckless Republican budget," Jeffries said. "Not one."
SWING DISTRICT WORRIES
Johnson also faced continuing uncertainty among lawmakers who represent swing districts and large Hispanic constituencies, who are concerned that deep spending cuts could harm programs that provide food assistance, scholarship grants and the Medicaid healthcare program for the poor.
Some of those lawmakers appeared to be more upbeat about voting for the resolution, saying they had been assured that aid to Medicaid beneficiaries who are citizens and federal support for program benefits would not be scaled back.
"I still haven't decided. But I'm leaning more towards 'yes' at the moment," said Representative Nicole Malliotakis, who represents a Republican-leaning district in New York City.
"I feel that we can do this in a way where it doesn't impact my hospitals, it doesn't impact my seniors, or people with disabilities - particularly children with developmental disabilities. Those were my main concerns going into this."
The House was due to vote Tuesday afternoon on whether to begin debating the budget resolution. Success in the House and Senate will not in and of itself extend Trump's tax cuts but will unlock a parliamentary tool that Republicans will need to circumvent Democratic opposition and the Senate filibuster to move forward later this year.
Johnson, of Louisiana, sounded optimistic about passing the budget resolution on Tuesday as he headed into a meeting with Republican lawmakers.
Later, he conceded that things might not work out as scheduled.
"There may be a vote tonight. There may not be," he told reporters. "Stay tuned."
(Reporting by David Morgan, additional reporting by Gabriella Borter; Editing by Scott Malone and Alistair Bell)
