Nearly two dozen governors are throwing their support behind President Donald Trump’s push for a new party-line spending bill — the latest effort to build pressure on Senate Majority Leader John Thune and his GOP colleagues to move quickly.
The letter, a copy of which was obtained exclusively by POLITICO, comes as White House budget director Russ Vought and James Braid, Trump’s top legislative aide, are set to meet with Senate Republicans during a closed-door lunch Wednesday where they will outline the White House’s vision for the bill.
“As Republican Governors, we strongly support your call for the United States Senate to urgently pass a budget resolution. This resolution is a crucial first step to protect America’s elections, strengthen America’s national defense, and support American farmers,” the letter reads.
Signers include leaders of the two largest GOP states, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, as well as the governor of Thune’s home state of South Dakota, Larry Rhoden.
They added that they believe it is “critical” for Congress to pass a bill that includes assistance for the military, farmers and election-related funding.
The state-level push comes after the House adopted a $95 billion budget blueprint for the party-line bill that is facing skepticism in the Senate, where some defense hawks want to spend much more while deficit-minded Republicans want a smaller price tag. Thune indicated Tuesday that the White House wants to expand the scope of the bill, which would complicate his already complex battle to wrangle votes for a narrower budget blueprint.
Thune hasn’t ruled out trying to adopt a budget resolution as soon as next week — the first step in the party-line reconciliation process — but has been frank about the challenges.
“As I’ve said before, it’s all about having 50,” he said this week.
Trump, in a Wednesday Truth Social post, reiterated his demand for action: “I am calling on the Senate to get this critical first step done before the August recess. This Resolution can be adopted at a simple Majority threshold. GET IT DONE!”
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