Trump after GOP meeting: Any Republican who opposes budget plan is 'a fool'

President Donald Trump held a closed-door meeting Tuesday with various Republican factions in an effort to bridge party divisions over his "One Big, Beautiful Bill" — a sweeping piece of legislation aimed at funding his agenda.

While, in Trump’s words, “there was a lot of love in the room,” he also warned that he would regard as “a fool” “anybody that didn't support it [meaning the bill] as a Republican.”

He also assured that it would be “the biggest tax reduction in history” and “the biggest regulation reduction in history,” emphasizing that it would protect Medicaid and Medicare: “We're going to keep them, and even make them stronger.”

Both programs are at the heart of the dispute—within the Republican camp and with Democrats, who argue the funding proposal reduces coverage for people with disabilities. The president, however, claimed that it is the Democrats who are on the path to "destroy" public insurance.

Speaking on condition of anonymity, sources who attended the meeting said Trump urged lawmakers to speed up the bill’s approval and to stop pushing for Medicaid cuts. Rep. Dusty Johnson of South Dakota told the president was "frustrated" with the pace of negotiations, saying, "He made it pretty clear we need to quit screwing around."

Speaking to the same outlet, Rep. Thomas Massie said he would stand firm in his opposition. Trump had publicly criticized him before the meeting and, according to Massie, brought it up about eight times during the discussion. While he predicted that most of his colleagues would ultimately vote for the bill, he said he was comfortable being the last remaining "no" vote.

“We’re going to move forward, but it has to be done in a fiscally responsible way,” Rep. Andrew Clyde said on Bannon’s War Room. He clarified that this means reducing the deficit—a point frequently emphasized by the bill’s most vocal critics.

Clyde is a member of the Freedom Caucus, a group of Republican fiscal hawks. The caucus chairman, Rep. Andy Harris, said they were still “a ways away” from reaching a deal—but added that an agreement was possible. Just hours earlier, the GOP had released a poll claiming that Americans support “eliminating waste, fraud, and abuse in the Medicaid program.”

According to The Hill, Representatives Mike Lawler and Andrew Garbarino left the meeting just as unconvinced as when they arrived. Both are part of a group of lawmakers pushing for changes to the cap on state and local tax (SALT) deductions.

Speaker Mike Johnson plans to have the House Rules Committee approve the bill within the next few hours, paving the way for a floor vote and potential passage before Memorial Day.

After a weekend of intense negotiations, the bill cleared the Budget Committee on Sunday. If it gets through the Rules Committee, it could go to a full House vote by midweek.