CQ Budget

President Donald Trump's new budget reconciliation law is already starting to define next year's midterm elections. CQ Roll Call's Daniela Altimari and David Lerman assess the political repercussions for both parties of the mammoth legislation and what it took to get the package across the finish line. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Senate parliamentarian has been busy throwing out key provisions in the GOP's reconciliation bill, ruling against measures affecting food stamps, immigration policy, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and more. CQ Roll Call's David Lerman and Aidan Quigley assess the latest condition of the reconciliation package and the fiscal 2026 appropriations process. Learn more about your ad choice...

The release of the biggest portion of the Senate GOP's reconciliation bill triggered internal party clashes over the scope of Medicaid cuts and the size of the state and local tax deduction known as SALT, among other disputes. CQ Roll Call's Caitlin Reilly, Sandhya Raman and David Lerman outline the sticking points in the Senate Finance Commitee's draft text and what they mean for the effort to pa...

Senate Republicans are struggling to produce text of their reconciliation package this week despite disputes over Medicaid, food stamps, tax policy, Medicare and more. CQ Roll Call's Peter Cohn, Caitlin Reilly and David Lerman outline the big fights that could tie up the bill and look ahead to the fiscal 2026 appropriations process. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Republican senators want changes to the "big, beautiful" House reconciliation bill, from Medicaid to tax cuts and more. And House appropriators begin writing their fiscal 2026 spending bills while the Trump administration tries to claw back already approved funding. CQ Roll Call's Paul M. Krawzak and David Lerman outline the fissures in the GOP reconciliation debate and the constitutional fight ov...

The House-passed reconciliation bill containing most of President Donald Trump's agenda won't clear the Senate in its current form. CQ Roll Call's Caitlin Reilly, Peter Cohn and David Lerman outline the changes that could be on the table and the competing demands among Senate Republicans that will make final passage a tough slog. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The House Energy and Commerce Committee has proposed Medicaid cuts to help pay for the GOP's budget reconciliation bill, though the cuts are less deep than some party moderates had feared and hard-right conservatives had sought. CQ Roll Call's Sandhya Raman, Jessie Hellmann and David Lerman outline the major changes to Medicaid that Republicans have proposed, the major cuts they omitted, and wheth...

President Donald Trump's preliminary fiscal 2026 budget request, which takes a meat ax to domestic programs and foreign aid, is getting a frosty reception from Senate GOP appropriators and Democrats alike. CQ Roll Call's Aidan Quigley and David Lerman provide an early outlook for this year's appropriations process and the likely next steps. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adch...

Vague promises from GOP leaders to seek deep spending cuts put down a rebellion from conservative holdouts and secured the adoption of a budget resolution this month. But now Republicans must begin writing a reconciliation bill enacting much of President Donald Trump's agenda with little sign of any resolution of the key conflicts that have divided GOP lawmakers for months. CQ Roll Call's Caitlin...

Speaker Mike Johnson faces a rebellion within GOP ranks over a budget blueprint that squeaked through the Senate. CQ Roll Call's Caitlin Reilly, Paul M. Krawzak and David Lerman assess the outlook for final adoption of a budget resolution and the big fights over Medicaid cuts and whether to pay for extending tax cuts --- two key disputes that could trip up a GOP reconciliation bill. Learn more abo...

The upcoming appropriations cycle faces some rough headwinds, as the Trump administration tries to freeze funding, fire thousands of public employees and gut federal agencies, while Republicans pursue a partisan reconciliation package that will further antagonize Democrats. Aidan Quigley, Caitlin Reilly and David Lerman discuss the challenging political climate for fiscal 2026 spending bills and h...

The six-month continuing resolution that avoided a partial government shutdown left Democrats deeply divided. CQ Roll Call's Mary Ellen McIntire and David Lerman explain the nature of the rift, whether it's likely to heal, and what it means for the party's ability to govern and combat the Trump administration. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

House GOP leaders must rally their razor-thin majority to pass a stopgap funding measure this week, while Senate Democrats must decide whether to vote against a bill they dislike and trigger a partial government shutdown. CQ Roll Call's Peter Cohn and David Lerman assess the prospects for a fiscal 2025 continuing resolution and discuss the state of play on the GOP's budget reconciliation process....

A continuing resolution to head off a partial government shutdown is caught in the political crossfire of federal employee layoffs, funding freezes and a partisan dispute over the power of the purse. CQ Roll Call's Aidan Quigley, Caitlin Reilly and David Lerman assess the political pressures for passing a stopgap funding extension, and the state of negotiations for a budget reconciliation package....

A House vote this week will test the unity of Republicans for a budget blueprint that would pave the way for a sweeping package of tax cuts, border security, defense funding, spending cuts and more. CQ Roll Call's Paul M. Krawzak and David Lerman outline the competing pressures between GOP centrists and hardcore conservatives over a budget resolution critical to President Donald Trump's agenda. Le...

The Senate's plan for a slim budget blueprint focused on border security and defense could be upended by President Donald Trump's new endorsement of the House push for "one big, beautiful" reconciliation package enacting much of his agenda all at once. But the House plan faces political pressures of its own, as GOP moderates shy away from steep spending cuts to critical safety-net programs. CQ Rol...

House leaders had to punt on plans for a Budget Committee markup early this week as Republicans continue to squabble over the size of a budget reconciliation package and how to pay for it. CQ Roll Call's Caitlin Reilly and David Lerman assess the status of budget negotiations, the timing for action, and how far Senate Republicans may get in their own alternative, slimmer reconciliation package tha...

Republicans are struggling to come together on a budget resolution that would pave the way for a mammoth reconciliation bill encompassing much of President Donald Trump's agenda, but there's no sign of a deal that would unite the conference. CQ Roll Call's Aidan Quigley and David Lerman discuss the latest on a budget resolution, the fight over spending cuts, and whether leadership's timeline for a...

A Trump administration directive to freeze spending on federal grants and loans pending a policy review outraged Democrats and reignited a debate over who controls the power of the purse. CQ Roll Call's Paul M. Krawzak and David Lerman outline the battle over presidential "impoundment" authority and what it may mean for appropriations. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Torn over strategy for passing Donald Trump's agenda, the House and Senate are on a collision course over how to use the budget reconciliation process to pass tax cuts, border security, defense funding and more. CQ Roll Call's Aidan Quigley and David Lerman outline the dispute, the political dynamics involved, and whether a leadership timeline for action is realistic. Learn more about your ad choi...

The election of Speaker Mike Johnson for another term underscored how difficult it will be for Republicans to govern with a razor-thin majority. CQ Roll Call's Jim Saksa and David Lerman recount what it took for Johnson to win the gavel and explain what it may mean for the legislative battles to come. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A funding package that averted a partial government shutdown left Republicans bitterly divided and chastened. CQ Roll Call's Aidan Quigley and David Lerman examine the political fallout from a week of GOP infighting and what it means for President-elect Donald Trump's ambitious agenda next year. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Republicans are preparing to use the budget reconciliation process to push border security, tax cuts and more on party-line votes next year. CQ Roll Call's Caitlin Reilly, Aidan Quigley and David Lerman outline what GOP leaders have in mind and the challenges they face. They also have the latest on plans for a stopgap funding and disaster relief measure needed by next week. Learn more about your a...

President-elect Donald Trump's new Department of Government Efficiency isn't really a federal department, but it promises to take a meat ax to federal spending and regulations. CQ Roll Call's Peter Cohn and David Lerman assess what the outside agency can and can't do and what to expect from the new DOGE effort. We also look at President Joe Biden's push for new Ukraine aid and disaster relief as C...

Lawmakers are torn over the size and shape of a disaster relief package headed for a vote next month. CQ Roll Call's Aidan Quigley and David Lerman discuss the latest on disaster aid, overdue appropriations, a new Senate defense budget writer, and a House firebrand's new role in curbing government spending. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices