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Senator Ron Johnson Calls for Major Spending Cuts to Support Trump’s Agenda

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Prominent conservative Senator Ron Johnson expressed concerns on Sunday regarding the advancement of Donald Trump’s tax cuts and immigration initiatives in the U.S. Senate. He indicated that progress on these issues hinges on a commitment from the president and Republican leadership to significantly reduce federal spending to levels not seen since before the COVID-19 pandemic.

Johnson, who serves on both the Senate’s budget and tax committees, emphasized the necessity of implementing spending reductions that surpass a $2 trillion target that has already been approved by the House of Representatives. He urged Republican leaders to establish a systematic review of the federal budget to identify additional areas for cuts.

“Without a commitment to returning to some reasonable pre-pandemic spending level, and a process to actually achieve it, I don’t think that’s going anywhere,” Johnson stated during an interview on Fox News’ “Sunday Morning Futures” program.

He further articulated the need to reduce overall federal expenditures from an estimated $7 trillion in the current year down to the $4.4 trillion benchmark set in 2019. “We have a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to address this. This is our moment,” Johnson remarked.

These statements from Johnson could complicate the efforts of Senate majority leader John Thune, who is aiming to push a revamped version of the House plan through this week.

With a 53-47 majority in the Senate, Republicans require at least 50 votes to move the agenda forward, with Vice President JD Vance acting as the tie-breaking vote.

However, there exists a considerable divide among congressional Republicans regarding spending cuts. While some members, including Johnson, advocate for more substantial reductions than what has been proposed by the House to finance Trump’s agenda and to address the national debt, others are pushing for more moderate cuts to safeguard social safety net programs, such as Medicaid, which provides health coverage for low-income individuals.

Aligning the House and Senate on a common blueprint is critical, as it would allow the use of budget reconciliation—a legislative tool that can facilitate the enactment of Trump’s agenda later in the year, bypassing potential Democratic blocks in the Senate.

In a related move last week, Trump withdrew his nomination of Republican Representative Elise Stefanik as U.S. ambassador to the United Nations. He cited that the decision was made to bolster the chances of his agenda’s success in the House, which currently holds a narrow Republican majority of 218 to 213.

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