Trump Urges Senate to Advance House Budget Resolution Before August Recess

President Donald Trump intensified pressure on Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) on Friday, urging the Senate to immediately take up a House-passed budget resolution that would advance key funding priorities, including support for the Iran war, despite Thune's acknowledgment that the proposal currently lacks enough Republican support to pass.
In a post on Truth Social, Trump called on Senate Republicans to move quickly before lawmakers leave Washington for the August recess.
“I am asking that the Senate adopt a Budget Resolution, which can pass with a simple Majority, before leaving for the August recess. We are ready to work side-by-side with the Senate to get this done for the American People!” Trump wrote Friday afternoon.
The president's latest push came just two days after he criticized the Senate during a rally in Georgia, saying, “the Senate is a place you send things when you want them to die.”
Trump's appeal follows comments from Thune on Thursday indicating the House-approved budget framework does not currently have the votes needed to advance in the upper chamber.
“As I’ve said before, you got to get to 50, and I can’t count to 50 right now on a budget resolution,” Thune told reporters when asked about the proposal's prospects in the Senate.
He added that discussions among Senate Republicans would continue, while emphasizing that government funding remains his primary focus.
“We’ll see. We’ll have those conversations with the conference. The priority is funding the government. To me, that’s the thing we got to keep our eyes on,” Thune said.
The $95 billion budget package approved by the House includes $73 billion for the Pentagon and intelligence agencies, $12 billion for farmers and $10 billion for election-related reforms.
The latest exchange underscores growing friction between the White House and Senate Republican leadership over the pace of advancing the administration's legislative priorities.
On Thursday, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said Trump was becoming increasingly frustrated with the Senate's lack of action.
She said the president’s “patience is running out” with Thune and added that “the Senate needs to do its job.”
Thune responded sharply to the criticism, suggesting the White House should help secure the votes necessary for passage.
“Maybe she or somebody else ought to get on the phone and get the votes. Right? It’s 50 around here,” Thune said.
He also argued that Democrats were primarily responsible for blocking Republican priorities.
“Instead of pointing the finger at Republicans, they might think about going after the people who are stopping it on the floor, which is the Democrats,” Thune added. “And if there are Republicans they think are gettable, get on the phone.”
Earlier in the week, Thune said he intends to hold onto the House-passed budget framework and potentially use it as the legislative vehicle for a government funding stopgap expected in September.
If both the House and Senate pass a joint budget resolution, Republicans would unlock the budget reconciliation process, allowing certain legislation to pass the Senate with a simple majority rather than the 60 votes typically required to overcome a filibuster.
However, previous efforts to pass the Safeguard American Voter Eligibility Act through the Senate have fallen short. The legislation would require proof of citizenship to register to vote and photo identification to cast a ballot.
Senate Parliamentarian Elizabeth MacDonough has ruled that Trump’s top legislative priority does not qualify for passage under the Senate's budget reconciliation rules.
Republican lawmakers also remain divided over whether the $95 billion package should be offset with additional spending cuts, adding another hurdle as Senate leaders continue searching for enough votes to move the measure forward.