After signing Republicans’ $70 billion budget reconciliation bill to fund immigration enforcement on Wednesday, President Trump last night laid out his demands for the party’s next planned legislative package.
In a lengthy social media post, Trump called on Republicans to “IMMEDIATELY” pass another budget reconciliation bill, which he said should include a proposed $350 billion funding boost for the Pentagon as well as the SAVE America Act, the president’s coveted election overhaul, which has stalled in the Senate.
“I am hereby calling on Republicans in Congress to IMMEDIATELY advance and pass the forthcoming $350 Billion Reconciliation Bill (Recon 3.0) — which, at the request of our Great Department of War — will include THE SAVE AMERICA ACT as well,” Trump wrote. “No games, no delays, and no weak compromises! Do this ASAP.”
Trump added that a third reconciliation bill — “Recon 3.0,” following last year’s One Big Beautiful Bill Act and the new immigration package — is the only path to approving the full $1.5 trillion in military spending that he has requested for fiscal year 2027. He also touted his proposed package of election reforms, which requires voter ID and proof of citizenship to register to vote as well as a ban on mail-in ballots. The bill also includes unrelated measures to prohibit transgender athletes in women’s sports and restrict gender-affirming care for trans youth.
Congressional Republicans have long eyed a potential third reconciliation bill, but they are still mapping out which priorities would be included amid considerable skepticism in their ranks that they can come together to pass another megabill.
“If there’s a good reason to do another reconciliation bill, if there’s support for it, then my assumption is that it will be something that could get 218 [votes] in the House and 50 votes in the Senate,” Senate Majority Leader John Thune told reporters Wednesday. He said there has been talk about finding savings by curbing waste, fraud and abuse in social programs, but much would depend on the specific contents of any package.
A day earlier, GOP Sens. Susan Collins and Mitch McConnell cautioned Air Force Secretary Troy Meink against relying on reconciliation for needed funding, expressing doubts about the chances of passing another party-line bill. “I think it’s safe to conclude there will not be another reconciliation bill, so it’s really not an option,” McConnell said.
What’s next: Trump may be ramping up the pressure, but his demands appear unlikely to be met. His SAVE America Act doesn’t meet the requirements to be included in a reconciliation bill and doesn’t have the GOP support it would need to clear the Senate. And key Republicans have concerns about adding $350 billion in defense spending via a reconciliation bill rather than the usual appropriations process.
Republicans also have limited time to try to pull together a Recon 3.0 bill before the November elections and, as Politico’s Mike DeBonis writes, finding consensus on their next priorities will be complicated: “Fiscal hawks in the party will demand offsets for the Pentagon funding that could necessitate cuts to safety-net programs that vulnerable incumbents are likely to resist making just months ahead of Election Day.”