CNN
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Senate Republicans kicked off a marathon vote series Thursday evening in a bid to adopt a budget blueprint, taking the first step to advance President Donald Trump’s sweeping agenda and setting up a clash with the House.
Trump has endorsed a competing plan from House Republicans that is more expansive, but that hasn’t stopped Senate Republicans from forging ahead, a sign of the challenges congressional Republicans face as they navigate narrow majorities and divergent strategy.
Ahead of a vote to adopt the Senate GOP budget resolution, the chamber is taking a lengthy series of amendment votes known as a “vote-a-rama.” These marathon voting sessions can go for hours and often all night. The budget resolution is a non-binding blueprint that does not carry the force of law, but amendment votes serve as a way for each party to force the other side on the record over controversial issues.
During the late-night session that started Thursday evening and stretched into Friday morning, Democrats attempted to force tough votes for Republicans over a slate of high-profile issues, including the war in Ukraine and protecting Medicare and Medicaid from cuts as Republicans seek to enact Trump’s legislative priorities.
Senate Republicans have put forward a more narrow budget resolution that would bolster funding for immigration enforcement, national security and energy production. In contrast, House Republicans have more far-reaching plan that would allow them to address tax policy, a critical issue that Senate Republicans want to take up later as part of a second legislative package.
House Republicans, with a razor-thin majority, want to address all of the party’s major priorities in a single bill in a bid to get everything done at once. Senate Republicans, on the other hand, want the party to score an early win on issues important to voters, like immigration and the border, before moving on to address tax policy, a thorny issue that may take longer – and prove more challenging – for the party to thread the needle.
Trump called on both chambers to pass the House plan on Wednesday, saying on Truth Social that it implements “my FULL America First Agenda, EVERYTHING, not just parts of it!”
But Trump weighed in with praise for Senate Republicans as the marathon vote session got underway Thursday evening. “Thank you to Majority Leader John Thune, and the Republican Senate, for working so hard on funding the Trump Border Agenda,” the president said on Truth Social. “Your work on funding this effort is greatly appreciated!”
Democrats force votes on tax cuts for billionaires, Ukraine and protecting Medicaid and Medicare
Senate Democrats attempted to paint Republicans as the party of the wealthy during the lengthy marathon vote session – and at times were able to peel off GOP votes.
GOP Sen. Susan Collins of Maine backed an amendment blocking tax cuts for billionaires while food prices remain high, and GOP Sen. Josh Hawley of Missouri voted with Democrats for a measure meant to lower housing costs by easing hedge funds out of buying up single family homes. However, neither amendment received enough support to be adopted.
The first Republican-offered amendment of the marathon late-night vote session came from GOP Sen. Dan Sullivan of Alaska in a bid to show party support for Medicare and Medicaid. It was adopted 51-49, with most GOP senators voting in support, except for Sens. John Curtis and Mike Lee voting with Democrats against it. Democrats argued the amendment would not actually protect people on Medicare and Medicaid.
The GOP effort to show support for Medicare and Medicaid in the Senate is notable as some House Republicans have raised concerns about the future of Medicaid in particular as the House prepares to move ahead with its own budget blueprint, which is different from the Senate plan.
Senate Democrats also called up an amendment aimed at supporting Ukraine against Russian aggression. The amendment did not get any GOP support, however, and the vote failed.
Senate Armed Services Chairman Roger Wicker argued that the budget resolution was “not the right fit” for the issue.
“There is no greater supporter of Ukraine in this Senate than I am, but this is not the right fit,” the Mississippi Republican said. Wicker added, “There is a place to talk about Ukraine. It’s not this place.”
GOP faces major challenges ahead to resolve differences and enact Trump agenda
An identical budget resolution must be adopted by both the House and Senate before Congress can take the next step to advance legislation through a process known as reconciliation.
Bills advanced through the budget reconciliation process cannot be filibustered, meaning they can be approved by a simple majority in the Senate – not the usual 60 votes required for most other measures. This would allow Senate Republicans to pass the legislation on a party-line vote with support from Democrats.
Ultimately, the House and Senate will need to resolve their different approaches to find a path forward. But how that will happen remains unclear. Even once both chambers have agreed on the budget resolution, there will still be major work ahead as the process of drafting legislation is likely to be contentious and involve painstaking negotiations over weeks to months.
CNN’s Manu Raju, Sarah Ferris and Lauren Fox contributed to this report.
