Friday's deadline looms to move President Donald Trump's $9.4 billion rescissions bill to codify the Department of Government Efficiency's spending cuts under a simple majority in the Senate.
Before Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., brings the procedural vote to proceed to debate on the bill, Trump's Office of Management and Budget Director Russ Vought will give senators a closed-door information session Tuesday afternoon, Politico reported.
Thune needs a simple majority of 51 Senate votes to proceed to debate – and pass the spending cuts package – and have 53 Republicans to work with against the unilateral "no" obstructionist votes of 45 Democrats and two independents that caucus with them.
Newsmax outlined Monday the five potential GOP holdouts Thune will have to appease to push the bill along with Senate Appropriations Chair Susan Collins, R-Maine, a frequent anti-Trump GOP vote, leading among them.
"We still are lacking the level of detail that is needed to make the right decisions," Collins told reporters Monday night. "It's extremely unusual for any senator to not be able to get that kind of detailed information."
Public reporting of the rescissions has broken down the $9.4 billion into two buckets: $1.1 billion to end taxpayer dollars for liberal-biased media outlets like NPR; and $8.3 billion of free foreign aid under the USAID umbrella that Trump has long sought to end.
Among the others in the Senate GOP seeking to keep the free foreign aid spigots flowing is Sen. Jerry Moran, R-Kan., according to Politico.
Moran also took a bow for blocking Trump and GOP efforts to cut waste, fraud, and abuse out of Medicaid spending in the One Big Beautiful Bill.
The week's schedule before the Friday deadline to pass the official White House rescissions request on former President Joe Biden-era spending levels includes:
- Tuesday vote to proceed to debate.
- Wednesday vote-a-rama on amendments: Democrats used these in the OBBB process to pepper votes to ostensibly filibuster fast action on the process.
- Early Thursday vote to end debate and votes.
- Potentially late Thursday final vote to approve to spike the DOGE-recommended spending cuts.
Both Trump and former DOGE architect Elon Musk have voted Senate GOP primaries against those who vote against the cutting of massive government waste, fraud, and abuse, putting added pressure on Thune and the GOP to push ahead before Friday's deadline.
Failing that, the Biden-era spending will be locked in as previously appropriated.
Much like the OBBB, the House GOP does not want the Senate GOP to modify the version they passed.
"I think you got to respect the White House's request, and that's what we did, so I hope that's what we get back," House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., told reporters Monday. "There are two big categories of rescissions, and I'm not sure either of them should be subject to dispute."
The House GOP holdouts that bent to Trump wishes and Senate changes on the OBBB would be a hard sell on trimming anything from the $9.4 billion in spending cuts in this bill.
Eric Mack ✉
Eric Mack has been a writer and editor at Newsmax since 2016. He is a 1998 Syracuse University journalism graduate and a New York Press Association award-winning writer.
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