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Capitol agenda: GOP eyes cuts to Trump’s tax promises

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Senate Finance Republicans are increasingly looking to dial back key items on President Donald Trump’s tax policy wish list. And it’s pitting them against the architect of the House-passed tax legislation, Ways and Means Chair Jason Smith — and potentially even the White House.

The rub is this: The House version of the megabill would restore tax incentives for research and development, business equipment and debt interest through 2029, which Trump has indicated he supports. But Senate Republicans are dead-set on making them permanent, a proposition that would likely add hundreds of billions in more red ink to the legislation.

To offset that cost, GOP senators are looking to water down other tax provisions they believe aren’t as “pro-growth.” Those policies include “no taxes on tips,” “no taxes on overtime” and tax relief for seniors — all proposals Trump touted on the campaign trail and collectively boast a price tag of roughly $230 billion, according to the Joint Committee on Taxation.

Smith is warning senators to tread carefully in challenging Trump’s desires.

“I think that the United States Senate will not want to scale down the president’s priorities. No tax on tips, no tax on overtime are two of his top priorities,” the Missouri Republican told reporters Monday. “Are there some tweaks that they can do to it that I would recommend? Yes, and I have recommended.”

But some Senate Republicans who sit on the Finance panel have made clear they have their own ideas. When Blue Light News asked Sen. Ron Johnson whether he believes “no tax on tips” or “no tax on overtime” are pro-growth, he gave a terse “nope.”

“They’re making a case to increase the labor supply,” the Wisconsin Republican told Blue Light News. “I would just extend the current tax law.”

Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.) has likewise been pushing to make changes to both policies, telling Blue Light News Monday that “no tax on overtime” should be rewritten to ensure it only applies to people working over 40 hours a week.

Meanwhile, House Republicans are hoping to tweak some language in their bill they believe the Senate parliamentarian will identify as non-compliant with the budget reconciliation process. They’ll do so by using a procedural maneuver within the Rules Committee that won’t require the chamber to take a standalone vote on a revised measure, five people told Blue Light News.

House Republican leaders expect a report on the potential Senate problems Tuesday morning, though Majority Leader Steve Scalise acknowledged they may not have the full list before the Rules hearing scheduled for later Tuesday.

“I don’t think there will be any big surprises,” Speaker Mike Johnson added Monday, “but that’s part of the process.”

What else we’re watching:

— Rescissions heads to Rules: The House Rules Committee is scheduled to vote on the White House’s rescissions package at 2 p.m. Tuesday, paving the way for a floor vote by Thursday. Johnson and Scalise are confident they can appease members’ concerns about clawing back money Congress has already greenlit and slashing funding for the PEPFAR program and public media.

— Crypto vote imminent: Senate Majority Leader John Thune wants to pass landmark cryptocurrency legislation this week that would create new rules for dollar-pegged digital tokens. He teed up the stablecoin bill for another procedural vote as soon as Wednesday.

— Trump admins on Blue Light News: A slew of Trump administration officials will testify before various House and Senate committees Tuesday on the president’s fiscal 2026 budget requests for their agencies. That includes Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, Joint Chiefs of Staff Chair Gen. Dan Caine, NIH Director Jay Bhattacharya, CIA Director John Ratcliffe and Energy Secretary Chris Wright.

Jordain Carney, Jasper Goodman, Meredith Lee Hill and Jennifer Scholtes contributed to this report.

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Congress

Megabill reading wraps up after nearly 16 hours

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Senate clerks have completed a nearly 16-hour reading of the GOP’s 940-page megabill. Clerks began reading the text aloud at 11:08 p.m. Saturday and finished Sunday at 3:03 p.m.

By refusing to waive chamber rules allowing for reading, Senate Democrats hoped to create an opportunity to highlight some of the most unpopular issues in the legislation. Now, under Senate rules, there will be 20 hours of the debate evenly divided between Democrats and Republicans.

Democrats are expected to use their full 10 hours, while Republicans are expected to take only a couple hours. That would mean the vote-a-rama — a marathon series of amendment votes — will begin sometime early Monday morning, though senators could agree by unanimous consent to delay it.

The GOP megabill is by no means finalized. Party leaders continue to negotiate to tweak the bill in ways that will win 51 votes in the Senate while also garnering enough votes to pass in the House later this week without further modifications. Republicans also continue to deal with the chamber’s parliamentarian, who continues to review whether parts of the bill comply with the budget rules the GOP is using to pass the bill along party lines.

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White House eyes Kentucky state senator for Massie challenge

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White House officials will host Kentucky state Sen. Aaron Reed in the coming weeks for a discussion about challenging GOP Rep. Thomas Massie in next year’s Republican primary, according to two people granted anonymity to describe the private plans.

President Donald Trump and his political operation have been searching for a candidate to challenge Massie over his opposition to the president’s “big, beautiful bill” and his strike on Iran’s nuclear facilities. Trump political advisers Chris LaCivita and pollster Tony Fabrizio have launched a super PAC directed at defeating Massie that’s already running a TV ad attacking the seven-term incumbent.

Massie is embracing the challenge, fundraising off MAGA’s slights and telling reporters last week he raised $120,000 in a single day off of Trump’s threats to campaign “really hard” against him.

Massie — who previously endorsed Reed for state Senate, and whom Reed in return had called “one of America’s greatest Congressmen” — did not immediately return a request for comment. Reed, a former Navy SEAL, was first elected to the Kentucky state house last year.

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Thom Tillis says he will retire following Trump attacks

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Sen. Thom Tillis, a two-term North Carolina Republican who was expected to contest one of 2026’s toughest Senate races, said Sunday he will not seek re-election.

Tillis made the announcement after voting “no” on a procedural vote to advance President Donald Trump’s “big, beautiful bill” — the cornerstone of his domestic policy agenda. Trump subsequently attacked Tillis in a series of social media posts.

“In Washington over the last few years, it’s become increasingly evident that leaders who are willing to embrace bipartisanship, compromise, and demonstrate independent thinking are becoming an endangered species,“ Tillis said in a statement.

He continued: “As many of my colleagues have noticed over the last year, and at times even joked about, I haven’t exactly been excited about running for another term. That is true since the choice is between spending another six years navigating the political theatre and partisan gridlock in Washington or spending that time with the love of my life Susan, our two children, three beautiful grandchildren, and the rest of our extended family back home. It’s not a hard choice, and I will not be seeking re-election.”

Tillis’ retirement sets up what could be a wild and crowded GOP primary in the Tar Heel State. On the Democratic side, Rep. Wiley Nickel is already in the race, and national party leaders are hoping ex-Gov. Roy Cooper enters the race.

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