Medicaid, food stamps and vehicle tax emerge as early flashpoints in Trump agenda fight

As top Republicans give themselves just two months to pass President Donald Trump’s sweeping tax and spending cuts package, some GOP lawmakers are worrying it’s not enough time to resolve their biggest intraparty fights.

As top Republicans give themselves just two months to pass President Donald Trump’s sweeping tax and spending cuts package, some GOP lawmakers are worrying it’s not enough time to resolve their biggest intraparty fights. Under fierce pressure from the White House, GOP officials are attempting to finalize that package by a self-imposed deadline of July 4 – with Speaker Mike Johnson insisting he can pass the House’s bill sooner. But many rank-and-file Republicans worry that breakneck pace isn’t realistic with the massive policy landmines that lie ahead, from corporate tax perks to health care cuts that are already roiling the party. “My understanding is right now we are currently writing two different bills,” Sen. Josh Hawley put it bluntly as he described the two chambers’ collision course on policy differences. House Republicans are charging ahead with a half-dozen committee markups planned for this week and more next week. Johnson wants to hold a vote by the end of May, but Senate Republicans are proceeding far more cautiously. “Seven legislative weeks away if we had resolved all the differences in a bicameral basis would be a lot of work,” Sen. Thom Tillis, a Republican from North Carolina, told CNN. But, he added, “we aren’t through all the big issues yet.” For now, Trump has largely stayed out of the fray with lawmakers. Instead, the president has dispatched top Cabinet officials and aides, including Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, to iron out trillions of dollars in differences among House and Senate tax writing committees. He’s also letting key GOP committees find consensus among their ranks on tough calls about potential changes to Medicaid and food stamps.