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With Congress back in session, senators have their work cut out for them if they want to meet President Trump’s deadlines.
Due first is Trump’s sweeping tax and budget package, dubbed the “One Big Beautiful Bill Act.” An updated version of the legislation passed the House last month in a razor-thin vote (215-214).
Two Republican representatives (Thomas Massie and Warren Davidson) voted against the bill. Chair of the House Freedom Caucus Andy Harris voted present after the coalition expressed concern over the level of spending in the bill.
The bill now heads to the Senate, where it’s expected to face similar opposition from certain GOP holdouts. Republican leadership has a goal for the bill (ideally one that looks as close as possible to the current version) to make it to the president’s desk by the Fourth of July.
During an interview with CBS last week, House Speaker Mike Johnson said he’s advised GOP senators to “make as few modifications as possible.”
Senate Majority Leader John Thune later told reporters he plans to make an “imprint” on the bill. Assuming all Democrats vote against the bill and no one is absent, Republicans can have a maximum of three senators stray from the party.
Next on senators’ to-do list is the GENIUS Act, which Trump wants to see passed before summer’s end. The president’s crypto business interests, which seem to be growing by the day, pose a problem for bipartisan support, a person familiar with the matter told me.
Democrats are getting less and less likely to support any crypto legislation the more Trump and his family engage personally with the industry.
Some members of Congress and crypto lobbying groups have started toying with the idea of combining stablecoin and market structure legislation into one bill. This would be a massive undertaking, but with wavering support from Democrats, the odds of passing two crypto bills before midterms are starting to look slim.
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