Against the clock and with internal divisions, Johnson seeks to pass Trump's mega bill in the House

The Senate approved Donald Trump's mega bill, the "One Big, Beautiful Bill," on Tuesday. Now, the legislation will return to the House of Representatives for final approval before being sent to the president's desk. However, given the self-imposed July 4 deadline, Mike Johnson will have to work against the clock to convince his colleagues of the changes implemented by the Senate.

Last May 22, the House passed the mega bill by just one vote. The 215 votes in favor were the result of months of negotiations among Republicans to ensure the text would gain the approval of both tax hawks and Republicans representing moderate districts in blue states. The Senate changed that delicate balance of provisions, and now there are just days to rebuild that fragile Republican majority.

"We knew the Senate would amend the House product. I encouraged them to amend it as lightly as possible. They went a little further than many of us would have preferred," the House speaker declared Tuesday afternoon, emphasizing that he will seek to pass the bill before July 4.

"Republicans were elected to do exactly what this bill achieves: secure the border, make tax cuts permanent, unleash American energy dominance, restore peace through strength, cut wasteful spending, and return to a government that puts Americans first," he added.

However, some Republicans in the House have already expressed anger over the Senate amendments.

"Our bill has been completely changed"

The group most upset with the changes was the fiscal hawks, given that the new version will increase the deficit more than the House version.

One of the first to publicly complain was Ralph Norman (R-SC), who had voted for it in May. "Our bill has been completely changed. ... It's a non-starter," he told a group of reporters present on Capitol Hill.

Rep. Chip Roy (R-TX), one of the hardest Republicans to convince on the first vote, weighed in on his social media about the Senate changes: "They're backing away from the spending cuts, the spending restraint. They're backing away from the reforms that we think makes the math work."

As another congressman told Axios on condition of anonymity, there are "more than 20" Republican lawmakers threatening to vote against the bill. So Johnson will have to go back to negotiating with his colleagues in order to give the president his first big legislative win.