Congress
Trump demands Senate Republicans fire parliamentarian
President Donald Trump on Wednesday demanded Senate Republicans fire the nonpartisan Senate parliamentarian, Elizabeth MacDonough, after she ruled this weekend that Republicans could not include funding for the White House ballroom in an immigration enforcement bill.
Trump accused MacDonough of thwarting his agenda and urged Republicans to “get smart and tough,” escalating his long-running attacks on procedural hurdles inside Congress.
“Shockingly, Republicans have kept the very important position of ‘Parliamentarian’ in the hands of a woman, Elizabeth MacDonough, who was appointed, long ago, by Barack Hussein Obama and a vicious Lunatic known as Senator Harry Reid, who ran the Senate for the Dumocrats with an ‘iron fist,’” Trump posted on Truth Social. “Over the years, she has been brutal to Republicans, but not so to the Dumocrats — So why has she not been replaced?”
Obama did not have a say in MacDonough’s appointment in 2012.
The broadside came just days after MacDonough ruled that a provision allowing roughly $1 billion in White House and Secret Service security funding tied to Trump’s ballroom project could not be included in Republicans’ reconciliation package under Senate rules.
The decision was a significant setback for Republicans, who had hoped to pass the funding with a simple majority vote as part of a broader immigration and border security package. MacDonough determined that the provision requires 60 votes in the Senate, all but dooming the idea.
On Monday, Semafor reported that Trump called Senate Majority Leader John Thune, urging him to fire MacDonough.
Trump and his allies have argued the ballroom itself would be funded through private donations, while administration officials sought federal funding for related security upgrades, including hardened infrastructure, drone detection systems and Secret Service facilities.
On Tuesday, Trump defended the project amid mounting criticism from Democrats and skepticism from some Republicans over using taxpayer dollars for a project the president initially framed as privately financed.
During a tour of the construction site, Trump insisted the effort was “a gift to the United States of America” and said donors — not taxpayers — were paying for the ballroom itself.
House GOP leaders are canceling a vote on an Iran war powers resolution they had previously scheduled tor Wednesday, according to three people granted anonymity to share private scheduling updates.
Due to GOP absences and defections, the measure likely would have been approved if the vote were held today. Rather than take that risk, Republicans are now expected to hold the vote Thursday.
It comes the day after the Senate moved its own war powers resolution over a procedural hurdle in a surprise rebuketo President Donald Trump.
Alabama Rep. Barry Moore (R-Ala.) and ex-Navy SEAL Jared Hudson will advance to a runoff in Alabama’s Republican Senate primary.
The outcome amounts to a disappointing shutout for Attorney General Steve Marshall, who, despite a long tenure in elected office, was unable to overcome Hudson’s nascent popularity and President Donald Trump’s support for Moore.
The race became unexpectedly competitive when a late surge in support for Hudson rocketed him into second place in public polling. That boost in popularity proved successful against Marshall’s deep local ties to Republican politics.
The seat became open when Republican Sen. Tommy Tuberville announced he would not seek a second term in the Senate, instead opting to run for governor and return home to Alabama. Tuberville has not endorsed in the race that will determine his successor in Washington.
Moore won Trump’s early endorsement in the race, which offered him a needed advantage in the deep-red state. Other notable GOP groups entered the fray behind Moore shortly thereafter, like the powerful super PAC Club for Growth. That’s given the House Republican a significant upper hand in resources, despite having only a slight fundraising advantage over Marshall.
The runoff election is scheduled for June 16.
Republicans are preparing to remove Secret Service funding from their party-line immigration enforcement bill, according to two people granted anonymity to disclose private discussions.
Both people stressed that the decision isn’t final — and Senate Majority Leader John Thune said Wednesday morning that talks are still ongoing. But the expected decision comes as the Trump administration has struggled to sell GOP senators on the money, part of which would go toward President Donald Trump’s ballroom project.
Senate Republicans plan to discuss the matter at a closed-door lunch Wednesday afternoon.
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