Rep. Andy Ogles personally warned Speaker Mike Johnson not to proceed with a crucial House vote on Wednesday, which was essential to advancing President Donald Trump’s agenda and had sparked opposition from the right wing. After hours of efforts to convince Ogles and a dozen other Republicans, Johnson eventually agreed to delay the vote.
The vote on the Senate Republicans’ budget blueprint, which had drawn resistance from House GOP conservatives demanding more significant spending cuts, was postponed. GOP leaders now face the challenge of negotiating further cuts, despite firm resistance from the Senate GOP, which opposes any changes to their plan.
Trump had been actively pushing for the plan despite his escalating trade war issues, hoping to secure support from House Republicans. However, Johnson spoke with the president and decided to delay the vote to allow time for more concessions. “He understands it. He supports the process,” Johnson said after the call with Trump. “It sometimes takes a little bit more time to do that.”
While Johnson stressed that there were “different ideas on the table” to secure the votes, his decision to postpone the vote angered his leadership team. Johnson had previously expressed confidence that the vote would pass but was forced to reconsider due to the pressure from conservatives.
Rep. Lloyd Smucker, one of the holdouts, proposed an amendment tying tax cuts to deficit reduction measures, a move that could potentially sway more Republicans to support the budget plan. Smucker, Ogles, and others had warned Johnson that the measure wouldn’t pass in its current form.
Ogles and his fellow Republicans are resisting Trump’s push for a Senate-backed budget plan, which includes large tax cuts and massive spending to increase the debt limit, while committing to pay for only a fraction of it. Ogles stated his concerns, emphasizing, “I trust the president, but I don’t trust the Senate.” The disagreement is largely due to the Senate’s reluctance to agree to major spending cuts.
Trump has been personally involved in pushing Republicans to back the plan, holding meetings with key lawmakers and making calls to ensure support. However, some Republicans, like Rep. Rich McCormick, remain undecided and wary due to a lack of trust in past negotiations. “There is a trust factor that’s been kind of betrayed in recent history,” McCormick said, referring to previous failed efforts to address federal spending.
Despite the strong push from House conservatives, the Senate has remained firm, with Senate Majority Leader John Thune defending the decision to limit spending cuts to $4 billion, acknowledging that it was a significant point of contention but necessary to comply with the Byrd rule.