Senate Abandons Trump’s ICE, Border Funding Bill for Early Vacation; Thune Admits Paxton Endorsement Played Role
The Senate is heading home until June without finishing a reconciliation bill, after Republican tensions over the package coincided with President Donald Trump’s endorsement of Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton (R-TX) against incumbent Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX).
Punchbowl News founder Jake Sherman posted on X: “BREAKING NEWS: THE SENATE will go home until June, leaving the reconciliation bill unfinished. THUNE just told senators in the room. All because of the DOJ weaponization fund. House is expected to follow suit soon.”
Brendan Pedersen, a senior reporter with Punchbowl News, posted on X: “Thune asked if Senate Rs are responding to politics — ie, Trump endorsements and snubs this week
‘It’s hard to divorce anything that happens here from what’s happening in political atmosphere around us,’ Thune said. ‘You can’t disconnect those things.’”
While Republican Senators publicly claim substantive issues with the bill were the driving factor behind the early vacation, Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) acknowledged President Donald Trump’s Tuesday endorsement of Ken Paxton over incumbent Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX) weighed heavily on Republican Senators’ minds as they skipped town instead of advancing a top Trump priority as planned. (Read more from “Senate Abandons Trump’s ICE, Border Funding Bill for Early Vacation; Thune Admits Paxton Endorsement Played Role” HERE)
