Politics
BREAKING: Senate Votes To Advance Big Beautiful Bill
The U.S. Senate has voted to advance the Trump-backed Big Beautiful Bill by a vote of 51-49 after an hours-long, marathon process that saw Vice President J.D. Vance head to the Senate floor in order to potentially cast a tie-breaking vote.
The vice president arrived at the Capitol Building shortly before 8:30 p.m. after three Republican Senators, Rand Paul of Kentucky, Ron Johnson of Wisconsin and Thom Tillis of North Carolina, voted against advancing the bill. The no votes meant that the Republican margin for error, meaning that Vance would be needed for a tie-breaker if the remaining GOP senators voted in the affirmative.
What followed was a tense waiting period that lasted for more than an hour, as five Republicans had yet to vote by the time Vance arrived at the Capitol. One was Senator Eric Schmitt (R-MO), who promptly voted “yes” shortly after the vice president arrived.
All attention then turned to Senator Lisa Murkowski (R-AK), one of the most moderate senators in the conference who has voted with Democrats on numerous occasions. Murkowski was seen chatting with the vice president, and later with Senate Republican leadership, as she was widely seen as the most likely to tank the bill.
At 9:16 p.m., Murkowksi ended the tense standoff by voting to advance the bill.
All eyes then turned to the three remaining Republicans, Senators Rick Scott (R-FL), Cynthia Lummis (R-WV) and Mike Lee (R-UT). While both Lee and Scott are staunch allies of President Trump’s, both men had raised concerns over the bill and suggested that they would be voting as a block with Senator Johnson, who voted against the bill.
The wait dragged on for more than an hour, as the remaining holdouts were seen huddling with Senate leadership and Vice President Vance as Murkowski was before. Senator Johnson was also seen in Majority Leader Thune’s office and indicated that it was “possible” he could end up changing his vote.
After another hour and a half, Johnson announced that he had flipped his vote, while the other three holdouts also voted yes. The legislation ultimately passed by a vote of 51-49, with Tillis and Paul voting against.
🚨 @SenateGOP has the votes to ADVANCE the ‘One Big, Beautiful Bill.’
Remember: we still have to read the bill on the floor, hold up to 20 hrs of debate, and ‘vote-a-rama’ where we’ll wear the libs down on amendment votes. Then, House passage. Busy weekend. pic.twitter.com/TgdlbT9TAR
— Markwayne Mullin (@SenMullin) June 29, 2025
With the Big Beautiful Bill advanced, it will now move to the debate stage under the budget reconciliation process. This will allow for up to 20 hours of debate where senators can introduce amendments, which could address contentious provisions like Medicaid changes, energy tax credits, or the state and local tax (SALT) deduction. Some amendments may be struck down if they violate the Byrd Rule, which ensures provisions are directly tied to the federal budget.
The amendments process could be crucial to satisfying Republican members who voted against advancing the bill to the debate stage.
Republicans hold a 53-47 Senate majority, meaning they can afford to lose only three GOP votes if all Democrats vote against, which they are expected to do. The Senate’s version differs from the House’s, with adjustments to Medicaid, energy tax credits, and other provisions to comply with the Byrd Rule. These changes could alienate House Republicans, complicating final passage if the House rejects the Senate’s version.
President Donald Trump has told lawmakers that he wants to have the bill on his desk by the July 4 Independence Day holiday. Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) has vowed not to call the chamber to recess until the legislation is passed.
In a Truth Social post Saturday night, the president announced that he will be meeting with potential primary challengers to Senator Tillis in the coming days. Tillis is widely seen as one of the most vulnerable incumbents in the upcoming midterm elections.
Trump’s announcement could be interpreted as a hard warning to Tillis to vote for the bill’s final passage or face a primary challenge, rather than a certainty at this time. The president previously vowed to green-light a primary challenge to U.S. Rep. Chip Roy (R-TX) after he threatened to tank budget proceedings in the House, though the challenge has not yet materialized after Roy voted for the bill.