Senate GOP Passes $70B Immigration Bill as Republican Revolt Fizzles

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Senate GOP Passes $70B Immigration Bill as Republican Revolt Fizzles

After a marathon 18-hour series of votes that stretched into the early morning, Senate Republicans on Friday passed their $69.5 billion bill funding immigration enforcement through fiscal year 2029.

The final vote, shortly before 5 a.m. EDT, came after weeks of delays and capped a series of 29 motions and amendment votes in which Republicans fended off multiple attempts to officially kill or redirect a separate $1.776 billion "anti-weaponization" fund announced last month by the Trump administration.

The fund, announced as part of a settlement of President Trump's extraordinary lawsuit against the IRS over the leak of his tax returns, drew a furious backlash on Capitol Hill and elsewhere as critics warned that it would amount to blatant corruption and self-dealing by the president. Yet a Republican revolt over the fund, which threatened to derail the immigration package, ultimately fizzled out as several amendments to eliminate or redirect the "anti-weaponization" money were defeated. The result was a victory for the administration that nevertheless exposed some deep Republican divisions and left lingering uncertainty over the future of the controversial payout fund.

Sen. Bill Cassidy, a member of the so-called YOLO caucus of Republicans who have been targeted for retribution by Trump and are now theoretically free to break with their party, was the deciding vote in rejecting a Democratic motion that would have sent the entire package back to committee. Cassidy reportedly tried for hours to fashion an amendment blocking the "anti-weaponization" fund that could be passed by a simple majority vote. When that effort failed, he offered an amendment that would redirect settlement fund money to compensate law enforcement officers who defended the Capitol on January 6, 2021. The amendment failed 52-47, falling short of the 60 votes needed.

Another amendment from Sen. Thom Tillis sought to reallocate $1.7 billion in "anti-weaponization" fund money to fraud enforcement by the Justice Department. It failed in a 15-84 vote.

An amendment that would have blocked construction of Trump's ballroom fell seven votes shy of the 60 needed but drew support from seven Republicans. Three Republicans backed an amendment that would have effectively barred Bill Pulte, Trump's pick for acting director of national intelligence, from serving in the role while still leading another federal agency.

In the end, the small band of Republican rebels angry over the "anti-weaponization" fund supported the broader reconciliation bill without any language to officially kill the $1.8 billion plan. The larger immigration funding measure passed in a 52-47 vote that saw only one Republican, Sen. Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, oppose the package.

"While I support funding to secure our borders and protect the homeland, I do not support bypassing the annual appropriations process by providing funding for multiple years in a manner that diminishes both congressional direction and oversight," Murkowski said in a statement. "By choosing to appropriate funding for three fiscal years instead of one, this measure weakens the normal budgeting process and sets another precedent for avoiding it when we find ourselves in disagreement."

Murkowski added that she wanted the package to provide only one year of immigration funding, limit how the money would be used and prohibit any taxpayer dollars from going to the "anti-weaponization" fund.

Democrats blasted the Republicans for failing to nix the payout fund and criticized their willingness to trust the word of Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche, who told lawmakers this week that the Justice Department would not move forward with the fund. President Trump later told reporters that he wasn't sure if the plan was really dead and that he thought it was "very important" and a "beautiful thing."

"Republicans refused to permanently outlaw Trump's $2 billion slush fund, leaving taxpayers to rely on nothing more than a promise from Donald Trump's personal fixer. That is not accountability. That is a permission slip," Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer said in a statement. "They pumped another $70 billion into Trump's personal police force, defended Trump's corrupt ballroom, and protected his slush fund for cop-beaters- all while voting against Senate Democrats' efforts to lower the cost of housing, health care, gas, and childcare."

The bill would provide $38.5 billion for Immigration and Customs Enforcement, $26 billion for Customs and Border Protection and an extra $5 billion for the Department of Homeland Security. Republicans took out a controversial proposal to provide $1 billion for the Secret Service, including security funding for President Trump's White House ballroom. They also cut a $1.5 billion provision for the Justice Department.

The bill now heads to the House, where GOP leaders canceled Friday votes, pushing off consideration of the reconciliation package until next week.

Why it matters: Trump's political agenda has repeatedly threatened to derail the immigration funding bill and the GOP's larger legislative agenda, spurring legislative fights that delayed a package the president wanted on his desk by June 1. Republicans have been forced to address the ballroom funding issue, the "anti-weaponization" fund and, most recently, the controversial Pulte appointment. Despite all that, Republicans are close to closing this chapter in the long-running battle over the Trump administration's immigration enforcement tactics and Democratic demands for reforms to ICE and CBP, which led to the 76-day shutdown of the Department of Homeland Security earlier this year.

Quote of the Day

"I really think this is one of the dumbest things that has been done by this administration."

• Rep. Adam Smith, the top Democrat on the House Armed Services Committee, after the panel adopted an amendment put forth by Republican Rep. Ronny Jackson, a MAGA ally, to approve the Trump administration's renaming of the Department of Defense as the Department of War.

"The surprising show of total unity from defense hawks injects another contentious partisan issue into the must-pass defense bill," Politico's Connor O'Brien notes.

The GOP's party-line vote on the amendment came as part of lengthy deliberations on the annual defense policy bill calling for $1.15 trillion in funding for the military in fiscal year 2027. The bill advanced out of committee in a 44-12 vote that saw a dozen Democrats oppose the measure, a highly unusual partisan divide on legislation that typically draws overwhelmingly bipartisan support. Republicans plan to add another $350 million in military funding via a partisan reconciliation bill, bringing the 2027 total to an unprecedented $1.5 trillion.

Trump had signed an executive order last fall allowing the Defense Department to use the Department of War name as a secondary option and letting Pete Hegseth use "Secretary of War" as his title. Still, Congress would have to vote to make those changes permanent.

Jackson defended the idea of restoring the Department of War name, last used in the 1940s, saying it sends "an unmistakable signal" to the rest of the world. "Deterrence only works when adversaries believe America is willing to fight and win to secure its interests," he said.

Smith, the Democrat, countered that the country and the Congress have bigger issues to address. "It's semantic nonsense at a time when we have a lot of substantive arguments," he said.

The Congressional Budget Office has estimated that the change, if implemented broadly across the department, could cost as much as $125 million. The Pentagon asked Congress to codify the change in April, saying it would cost about $52 million. But the change faces obstacles in the Senate, where Democratic votes will be needed to adopt it.

Job Growth Comes in Strong for Third Straight Month

U.S. employers added 172,000 jobs in May, the Labor Department reported Friday, easing concerns that the economy may be slowing under the weight of rising inflation.

The hiring numbers were more than double those expected by economists polled by The Wall Street Journal. The unemployment rate held steady at 4.3%, meeting expectations.

The data for previous months was revised higher, as well, indicating that the labor market has been stronger than previously understood. Job growth in March was revised upward by 29,000 to a healthy 214,000, while April's gains were revised upward by 64,000 to 179,000.

Where the jobs are: Growth was concentrated in the leisure and hospitality sector, which added about 70,000 jobs in May, far exceeding the 14,000 monthly average over the previous year. The big jump in jobs at hotels and restaurants could be driven by preparations for the World Cup, which kicks off in North America this month.

Local government employment grew significantly, as well, adding 55,000 jobs. And healthcare employment continued to expand, adding 35,000 jobs, with another 12,000 in social assistance.

What the analysts are saying: The May numbers, combined with the upward revisions for March and April, suggest that the labor market may be climbing out of a period of stagnation that began when President Trump imposed sharply higher tariffs on trading partners in April 2025.

"Despite everything going on in the world around us, America's employers are regaining their confidence," economist Guy Berger of Homebase wrote Friday, per Politico. "And that confidence is leading to the rising turnover we see in our data."

Navy Federal Credit Union Chief Economist Heather Long put it simply: "The hiring recession is over," she wrote on X. "More firms are hiring again."

The White House was pleased with the numbers, too, hailing the "OUTSTANDING JOBS NUMBERS!" in a post on X.

Inflation persists: Although the job numbers were impressive, the report indicates that inflation is still very much a problem, at least as far as wages are concerned. Wages grew 3.4% over the last year, below the level of inflation - which means workers are worse off on average due to the surge in prices.

The inflationary wave will certainly be a major issue for the Federal Reserve, and stocks tumbled Friday as traders mulled the growing odds that the central bank will not only have to delay interest rate cuts but may have to raise rates at some point this summer. Odds of a rate hike by the end of the year rose during the day.

Economists at Goldman Sachs told clients that they no longer expect the Fed to cut rates this year and now see the bank delaying further cuts from December 2026 and March 2027 to June and December of next year, buying time to better gauge the effects of Trump's tariffs, the AI revolution, higher oil prices and other consequences of the Iran war. The economists raised their odds of Fed rate hikes from 10% to 20%.

The CME FedWatch tool showed markets now placing a far higher chance of a rate hike in December: 50%, up from 26% a month ago.

Democrats also took notice of the downbeat wage data. "Wage growth isn't keeping up with inflation," Sen. Elizabeth Warren said. "Trump's failing economic agenda is shrinking families' paychecks."

US Postal Service Has Averted a Cash Crunch, Official Says

The U.S. Postal Service has averted the possibility that it will run out of cash next year but still faces long-term challenges, postal regulators told lawmakers on Thursday.

Robert G. Taub, the vice chairman of the Postal Regulatory Commission, told a House Oversight panel that a waiver of regulations requiring minimum retirement payments had freed up $15 billion or more through fiscal year 2030, averting a near-term cash crunch.

Postmaster General David Steiner had warned Congress in March that the postal service was on pace to run out of cash in less than a year, which would leave it unable to deliver mail.

The postal service said in April that it would temporarily suspend its contributions to an employee pension plan and was raising the price of a first-class forever stamp from 78 cents to 82 cents starting July 12.

Fiscal News Roundup

• Senate OKs $70B Immigration Bill After Rejecting Efforts to Permanently Ban Trump's Settlement Fund – Associated Press
• Trump 'Slush Fund' Left in Limbo After Senate Votes – AFP
• Trump Keeps Immunity from I.R.S., a Victory in a Long-Running Feud – New York Times
• House Panel Advances $1.15 Trillion Defense Bill After Marathon Debate – The Hill
• House Passes Ukraine Aid Over Objections of GOP Leaders – MS Now
• House GOP Moves to Codify Hegseth's 'Department of War' Name Change – The Hill
• The US Job Market Is Strong but Many Americans Are Still Frustrated by Prospects and Rising Prices – Associated Press
• Trump Says He Asked Pulte to Gut Intelligence Agency – Politico
• Trump's Troop Reversals in Europe Could Cost Millions and Have Left Soldiers in Limbo, Officials Say – Associated Press
• Postal Service Frees Up Enough Cash to Keep Operating for 'Several Years' – New York Times
• Anti-Trump Trade Alliance Eyes Pledge Not to Hike Tariffs – Politico
• Trump Officials Planned to Mark 2.7 Million Living People as Dead, Whistleblower Claims – Washington Post
• Trump Could Also Tear Down the Statue of Liberty, DOJ Argues in Defense of White House Ballroom – Politico
• Top Democrats Urge Treasury Department to Halt Production of Gold Coins With Trump Image – The Hill

Views and Analysis

• More Good Jobs Numbers Make the Case for Fighting Inflation – Washington Post Editorial Board
• The Jobs Apocalypse Will Have to Wait – Wall Street Journal Editorial Board
• 'YOLO Caucus' in Senate Is 'Lighting Fires' but Stopping Short of 'Burning the Whole House Down' – Gabe Gutierrez, Melanie Zanona and Christine Romans, NBC News (video)
• GOP Squeezes Hegseth, but Backs Pentagon Rebranding: 4 NDAA Takeaways – Ellen Mitchell, The Hill
• The Republican Senate Chickens Out – Robert Kuttner, American Prospect
• Democrats' Midterm 'Blue Wave' Dreams Face an Icy Challenge – George F. Will, Washington Post
• Affordable to Buy, Costly to Use – Thom Walsh, American Prospect
• Repeal This Biden-Era Tax – William McBride, Wall Street Journal