SCOTT SIMON, HOST:
Of course, this week has been dominated by events in the Middle East, but at home, President Trump presses ahead with his domestic agenda. Senate Majority Leader John Thune warned what's at stake if Congress doesn't pass the president's massive tax cut and spending bill.
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JOHN THUNE: If we don't take action, American families will be facing a massive tax hike starting in 2026.
SIMON: The Senator aims for a vote this coming week, but first, he needs to resolve divisions among fellow Republicans. NPR congressional correspondent Deirdre Walsh joins us. Deirdre, thanks so much for being with us.
DEIRDRE WALSH, BYLINE: Hey, Scott.
SIMON: Remind us, please, first, how is this bill significantly different than the one the House passed last month?
WALSH: Senate Republicans did make some changes to the version that cleared the House last month, but the core elements of this bill are similar. The bill permanently extends the tax cuts for individuals and businesses that Trump enacted back in 2017, but Republicans added some additional ones - things the president campaigned on, like no taxes on tips, no taxes on overtime. To pay for the tax cuts, this bill makes significant cuts to Medicaid. That's the health care program for low-income, elderly and disabled Americans. It adds new work requirements and changes the way states can finance their Medicaid programs. This bill also phases out hundreds of billions of dollars in clean energy tax breaks that the Biden administration put into place.
SIMON: And Senate Republicans are split on this package, right? Where are some of the divisions?
WALSH: Right, there are several issues. Rand Paul of Kentucky, for one, says the provision to increase the country's borrowing authority by $5 trillion to avoid a default later this summer is a nonstarter for him. Some conservatives say the bill doesn't cut enough spending. Another group of Republicans in the Senate oppose the Medicaid changes. They're worried that some of the changes could cause rural hospitals in their states to close. There's another group of Senate Republicans who represent states where new energy projects are getting up and running and generating jobs, and they want to delay phasing out those energy tax breaks so these projects can move ahead. Remember, Senate Majority Leader Thune can afford to lose only three votes to get this package through.
SIMON: And what's the Senator doing to try and bridge some of the differences?
WALSH: He's relying heavily on President Trump to be the closer. White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles was on the Hill meeting with Senate Republicans this week, and she reiterated the president wants this done by July 4. There are discussions making tweaks to some of the things that I just talked about to address these concerns. But for people like John Thune, it's kind of like Whac-A-Mole. If you give in to moderates on Medicaid, it could impact how conservatives view the bill in terms of its spending cuts.
And whatever changes Senate Republicans make, will need to get a majority in the House, and there's already a group of House Republicans who are raising red flags about some of these changes that the Senate's making. It's pretty clear this could slip beyond July 4. That's not a real hard deadline. The real deadline comes later this summer when the Treasury Department warns the country could bump up against the debt ceiling if Congress doesn't authorize more borrowing.
SIMON: Separately, the Senate, next week, is expected to take up a resolution related to Iran, right?
WALSH: Right. As the president weighs whether or not to take military action against Iranian nuclear facilities, Virginia Democratic Senator Tim Kaine is forcing a vote on a resolution. That resolution says the president cannot take military action against Iran without first coming to Congress for a vote. Kaine says he does expect some Republicans to join him, but so far, no Republican has said they're voting for this resolution. There will be intelligence briefings on the Hill early next week on Iran, and that could really impact the vote on this kind of resolution.
SIMON: NPR's Deirdre Walsh. Thanks so much.
WALSH: Thank you. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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