LIVE | BBB advances in the House after a night of intense negotiations
Republicans need to flip at least one “no” vote and ensure that undecided lawmakers are leaning “yes” in order to pass the bill.
House Speaker Mike Johnson, in a file image.
Tension in the House of Representatives is at an all-time high as they hash out whether the "Big Beautiful Bill," the Republican-driven bill backed by President Donald Trump, will make it to the floor.
After more than seven hours of political maneuvering, public claims and private negotiations, congressmen are voting on what is known as "the rule", a key procedure that, if passed, allows the final text of the 'BBB' to move on to formal debate.
The numbers, for now, are not on the Republicans’ side. A total of five Republicans — Thomas Massie of Kentucky, Andrew Clyde of Georgia, Brian Fitzpatrick of Pennsylvania, Keith Self of Texas, and Victoria Spartz of Indiana — have voted against the BBB, joining the entire Democratic caucus in opposition.
With no room for error, Republicans now face two immediate challenges. First, they need the remaining Republican holdouts — including conservative skeptic Chip Roy — to vote yes in order to advance the rule. Second, they must flip at least two of the existing ‘no’ votes. Only then can they secure the nine additional votes needed for the rule to pass. The current tally stands at 207-217, with the ‘no’ side in the lead.
Meanwhile, according to various reports, President Trump remains heavily involved in the negotiations, making calls early on to try to secure Republican votes. For now, the vote remains open as the leadership tries to convince the undecideds and ensure that all lawmakers who have not yet cast their vote are present.
BBB advances after an intense night of negotiations
After a night of intense and tense negotiations — including a phone call in which President Donald Trump actively engaged with several fractious members of his party — the full House of Representatives gave the green light to advance the bill with a vote of 219 to 213. Only one Republican congressman refused to switch his vote and joined all 212 Democrats in opposing the bill.
Trump explodes at holdouts on Truth Social
The President expressed notable frustration on his Truth Social account over the pace of negotiations, urging for swift progress so his Big, Beautiful Bill can continue advancing through the House of Representatives.
Trump assumes command of negotiations with rebels
Donald Trump finally joined the negotiations with a phone call to five representatives resisting a “yes” vote, including Thomas Massie, Victoria Spartz, and Tim Burchett. The call took place in a room off the floor while the vote was still open.
However, the outcome of the vote remained unchanged after the conversation.
Massie switches his vote from "yes" to "no"
Republican Thomas Massie just made things even more complicated for his party by changing his vote from yes to no on the “rule” — a key procedural measure needed to advance the Big Beautiful Bill. Massie explained that he changed his vote because he wanted to make his stance on the bill clear. However, as long as the vote remains open, any lawmaker can still change their vote at any moment.
Key Republican votes "yes"
Despite his warnings and criticisms of Medicaid cuts, Rep. David Valadao (R-CA), one of the most politically vulnerable in the country, ultimately voted in favor of the "rule" that allows Trump's 'Big Beautiful Bill' to move forward.
Valadao, who represents a district where virtually two-thirds of the population relies on Medicaid, had conditioned his vote on not altering those provisions, but ended up backing the Republican leadership. The tally, now, is 208 to 216, with eight votes still outstanding. Republicans still need a "no" vote to flip to bring the bill to the floor.
Johnson says he rejected Trump's support, vows to pass 'BBB'
According to the House Majority Leader, President Donald Trump made himself available to call lawmakers who disagree with the "Big Beautiful Bill." However, Johnson assured Fox News's Sean Hannity that he declined the offer, saying, "Mr. President, you’ve done your job, and we’ll do ours here."
Mike Johnson says vote will remain open
After Republicans fell short, for the moment, of the votes needed to pass Trump's "Big Beautiful Bill" to the floor, House Speaker Mike Johnson assured Fox News that the vote will remain open indefinitely, until the ten votes needed to move to formal debate are reached.
For now, "the rule" does not pass
With a vote of 207-216 in favor of "no" and only nine votes left to be counted, "the rule" to pass the "Big Beautiful Bill" to the full House floor is, for now, failing.
However, the measure can still pass, as the vote will remain open indefinitely and the four Republican congressmen who voted "no" - Andrew Clyde, Brian Fitzpatrick, Keith Self and Victoria Spartz - can still change their vote.
LATEST
