Vacation is cancelled for Congress until they get their work done, President Donald Trump demanded on Tuesday.
Trump warned congressional Republicans that “no one goes on vacation” until they pass his controversial spending bill, setting a July 4th deadline as lawmakers remain divided over key provisions.
“To my friends in the Senate, lock yourself in a room if you must, don’t go home, and GET THE DEAL DONE THIS WEEK,” Trump wrote on Truth Social while traveling to the NATO summit in The Hague. “Work with the House so they can pick it up, and pass it, IMMEDIATELY. NO ONE GOES ON VACATION UNTIL IT’S DONE.”
The ultimatum comes as Republicans face a tight timeline to pass the sprawling “One Big Beautiful Bill Act” before both chambers break for Independence Day recess. The Senate must first approve the package before the House can give final approval, requiring Republicans to resolve lingering policy disagreements that have fractured the party.
Senate Majority Leader John Thune echoed Trump’s demand that lawmakers remain in Washington.
“We will remain here until this reconciliation bill is passed,” Thune said. “By placing it on President Trump’s desk by the 4th of July, we will be ensuring that future generations of Americans can live in safety and prosperity.”
House Speaker Mike Johnson privately told Republicans during a closed-door conference meeting Tuesday morning to keep their schedules “flexible” next week as negotiations continue on the massive legislative package.
Key sticking points include cuts to Medicaid, rolling back green energy tax credits from the Biden-era Inflation Reduction Act, the state and local tax deduction cap, and the overall massive amount of borrowing required. The Senate Finance Committee eliminated a House-brokered SALT deduction deal last week, prompting blue-state Republicans to threaten opposition.
“The OBBB is now 1) increasing deficits a LOT than the House bill, 2) watering down termination of the Green New Scam to less than 50%, 3) watering down food stamp reforms, 4) taking out HSA expansion, 5) gutting our (weak) effort to stop rogue judges, & 6) more… so… NOT GOOD,” Rep. Chip Roy of Texas wrote on social media, saying he would not vote for the Senate version.
Several Senate fiscal hawks, including Ron Johnson of Wisconsin, Rand Paul of Kentucky, and Rick Scott of Florida have cited the bill’s massive addition to the deficit as a deal-breaker. Senator Josh Hawley of Missouri has raised concerns about Medicaid reforms in the package.
Republicans hold a 53-47 Senate majority, meaning the party can only afford to lose three votes with full attendance.
Trump also continued attacking hardline conservative Rep. Thomas Massie of Kentucky on Tuesday, calling him “very bad for the Constitution” and claiming he “votes, ‘NO!’ on everything, because he thinks it makes him cool, but he’s not cool, he’s a LOSER!” Massie was one of only two House Republicans who voted against the bill last month.
“MAGA should drop this pathetic LOSER, Tom Massie, like the plague! The good news is that we will have a wonderful American Patriot running against him in the Republican Primary, and I’ll be out in Kentucky campaigning really hard,” Trump wrote in an earlier Truth Social post.
Massie responded by sharing Trump’s 2022 endorsement, calling him “a first-rate Defender of the Constitution” and “a Conservative Warrior for Kentucky’s 4th Congressional District.”
Trump framed passage of the legislation as urgent following his announcement of a ceasefire between Israel and Iran. “Now that we have made PEACE abroad, we must finish the job here at home by passing ‘THE GREAT, BIG, BEAUTIFUL BILL,’ and getting the Bill to my desk, ASAP,” he wrote. “It will be a Historic Present for THE GREAT PEOPLE OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA.”