Trump pushes House Republicans to pass Senate housing bill

President Trump stepped up his pressure on Republicans in the House of Representatives to pass an ambitious housing bill approved by the Senate, despite strong opposition from some of his party members.

The 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act, which seeks to improve housing affordability, passed the Senate in March by a large majority of 89 to 10 votes. However, the legislation remains stuck in the House due to deep internal disagreements over several important sections.

Through his Truth Social platform, the president directly asked members of Congress to support the initiative pushed by Senators Bernie Moreno and Tim Scott. "I am asking Congress to pass that Bill, the 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act, which would ensure that homes are for people, not corporations."

The bill provides incentives to build new homes, repurpose abandoned buildings into housing, and modernize existing properties. It also proposes temporary limits on large institutional investors buying up large numbers of single-family homes.

Conservative pushback against temporary CBDC ban and limits on big investors

Although the Senate gave the bill strong bipartisan support, some conservative Republicans in the House strongly oppose a provision that would only temporarily ban the creation of a central bank digital currency (CBDC) until 2030, instead calling for a permanent ban, according to The Hill.

Rep. Anna Paulina Luna(R-Fla.) said a couple of months ago: "Like it doesn’t matter where you are on the political spectrum. You never want to have the government be able to just shut off your access to financials, et cetera."

Other lawmakers, such as Rep. Richard McCormick (R-Ga.), are also criticizing the section of the bill that would force large institutional investors to sell single-family rental homes they build within seven years. 

"When is it constitutional for us as a government to tell a business when they take the risk, they go out, they build something, that we’re going to take away your right to do with it, whatever you are legally able to do with it?" Rep. Richard McCormick questioned.

The legislation now stands as an important test for Republican cohesion and the affordability agenda being advanced by the White House.