Vice President JD Vance said on Tuesday that he was feeling “optimistic” about the “One, Big Beautiful Bill” after a meeting with Senate Republicans in which they discussed the legislation that seeks to provide funding and support for President Donald Trump’s second-term priorities.
In an exchange with reporters on Capitol Hill, Vance acknowledged there remain some kinks to work out.
“They recognize that it’s important to prevent the largest tax increase in American history and give working families some tax relief in this country,” Vance said. “They also know we’ve gotta reform some of our important programs, and I think that they’re in a mood to do that.”
He added: “They’ve got obviously some things they’re going to work through as a natural part of the legislative process, but I was very gratified and optimistic about what I just heard, so I think we’re going to be able to get this thing passed and get on with the next step of the president’s agenda.”
Medicaid remains a major point of contention among GOP lawmakers who are negotiating the finer details of the bill, which passed the House last month. Sen. Josh Hawley (R-MO), for instance, has been insistent that the program not face cuts that have been proposed.
Vance, who is a former Republican senator from Ohio, said he told members that he wants to “work with” some of the concerns they have about the legislation and he understands there are “some details about how you actually work on the Medicaid reforms.” But, he stressed, there is already broad consensus in certain areas— particularly when it comes to illegal immigrants getting coverage and work requirements.
“I think pretty much everybody agrees you don’t want illegal aliens to receive Medicaid,” Vance said. “You don’t want people who choose not to work to receive largess from the government. There’s broad alignment there, but some of the details are going to matter, and that’s what they’re all working on right now.”
That view is shared by Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD).
“It shouldn’t be available for illegal immigrants,” Thune recently said of Medicaid on “The Will Cain Show” on Fox News. “There are people who are ineligible. There are people, able-bodied males who are of working age, there ought to be a work requirement attached to it. These are all reforms to a program that was desperately in need of reform.”
Vance said he met with Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME), chairwoman of the Appropriations Committee, on Monday.
“She’s got some concerns and other folks have concerns,” Vance said. “You just have to work through them. You have to identify what are the ways that we can address those concerns. If we can’t address that concern in your preferred way, is there another way that we can fix it? That’s just the legislative process, of course. A lot of these guys have seen this work for longer than I’ve seen it.”
He also emphasized: “They’re all very confident we’re eventually going to get there, but we just got to work through some issues. Each member, each state is different. They’re doing a good job of constituent services for the people they represent, and part of that is making this bill as good as it possibly can [be].”
While the Trump administration expressed hope for the “One Big, Beautiful Bill” making it through Congress by July 4, that may prove to be overly ambitious. Vance said he believes Congress is in a “good place” to get it passed by the “end of the July 4th recess.”
Still, progress is being made.
The Senate Finance Committee released on Monday text for the legislation that falls under its jurisdiction.
Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX) touted how the panel included a provision he offered that seeks to stop taxpayer funding of transgender surgeries from Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program.
“No American taxpayer should have to fund radical gender transition surgeries, and I am proud that my bill to prohibit federal dollars from funding these dangerous procedures has been included in the Senate’s One Big Beautiful Bill,” Cornyn said in a statement. “I will continue to fight alongside President Trump to protect our most vulnerable and ensure taxpayer dollars are no longer used to advance the far left’s woke agenda.”
Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) has said he would consider backing the bill if its proposed debt ceiling increase is removed.
“I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again: I’m willing to negotiate if the White House strips the massive $5 TRILLION, long-term debt ceiling increase and replaces it with short-term extensions tied to real spending reforms. Fiscal responsibility isn’t a talking point. It’s a principle,” Paul declared Monday on X.
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[[{“value”:”
Vice President JD Vance said on Tuesday that he was feeling “optimistic” about the “One, Big Beautiful Bill” after a meeting with Senate Republicans in which they discussed the legislation that seeks to provide funding and support for President Donald Trump’s second-term priorities.
In an exchange with reporters on Capitol Hill, Vance acknowledged there remain some kinks to work out.
“They recognize that it’s important to prevent the largest tax increase in American history and give working families some tax relief in this country,” Vance said. “They also know we’ve gotta reform some of our important programs, and I think that they’re in a mood to do that.”
He added: “They’ve got obviously some things they’re going to work through as a natural part of the legislative process, but I was very gratified and optimistic about what I just heard, so I think we’re going to be able to get this thing passed and get on with the next step of the president’s agenda.”
Medicaid remains a major point of contention among GOP lawmakers who are negotiating the finer details of the bill, which passed the House last month. Sen. Josh Hawley (R-MO), for instance, has been insistent that the program not face cuts that have been proposed.
Vance, who is a former Republican senator from Ohio, said he told members that he wants to “work with” some of the concerns they have about the legislation and he understands there are “some details about how you actually work on the Medicaid reforms.” But, he stressed, there is already broad consensus in certain areas— particularly when it comes to illegal immigrants getting coverage and work requirements.
“I think pretty much everybody agrees you don’t want illegal aliens to receive Medicaid,” Vance said. “You don’t want people who choose not to work to receive largess from the government. There’s broad alignment there, but some of the details are going to matter, and that’s what they’re all working on right now.”
That view is shared by Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD).
“It shouldn’t be available for illegal immigrants,” Thune recently said of Medicaid on “The Will Cain Show” on Fox News. “There are people who are ineligible. There are people, able-bodied males who are of working age, there ought to be a work requirement attached to it. These are all reforms to a program that was desperately in need of reform.”
Vance said he met with Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME), chairwoman of the Appropriations Committee, on Monday.
“She’s got some concerns and other folks have concerns,” Vance said. “You just have to work through them. You have to identify what are the ways that we can address those concerns. If we can’t address that concern in your preferred way, is there another way that we can fix it? That’s just the legislative process, of course. A lot of these guys have seen this work for longer than I’ve seen it.”
He also emphasized: “They’re all very confident we’re eventually going to get there, but we just got to work through some issues. Each member, each state is different. They’re doing a good job of constituent services for the people they represent, and part of that is making this bill as good as it possibly can [be].”
While the Trump administration expressed hope for the “One Big, Beautiful Bill” making it through Congress by July 4, that may prove to be overly ambitious. Vance said he believes Congress is in a “good place” to get it passed by the “end of the July 4th recess.”
Still, progress is being made.
The Senate Finance Committee released on Monday text for the legislation that falls under its jurisdiction.
Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX) touted how the panel included a provision he offered that seeks to stop taxpayer funding of transgender surgeries from Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program.
“No American taxpayer should have to fund radical gender transition surgeries, and I am proud that my bill to prohibit federal dollars from funding these dangerous procedures has been included in the Senate’s One Big Beautiful Bill,” Cornyn said in a statement. “I will continue to fight alongside President Trump to protect our most vulnerable and ensure taxpayer dollars are no longer used to advance the far left’s woke agenda.”
Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) has said he would consider backing the bill if its proposed debt ceiling increase is removed.
“I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again: I’m willing to negotiate if the White House strips the massive $5 TRILLION, long-term debt ceiling increase and replaces it with short-term extensions tied to real spending reforms. Fiscal responsibility isn’t a talking point. It’s a principle,” Paul declared Monday on X.
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