This may take a little while.
The Senate's Republican majority leader John Thune's warning was dropped when the budget debate began on Monday morning local time. When Tuesday dawned, the members were still discussing and approving amendments to the nearly 1,000-page thick bundle.
Trump himself has called his budget "big and beautiful". Through his social media platform Truth Social, he acts as a cheerleader, and at times threateningly, to get it approved by Congress.
Increased national debt
The budget proposal evokes strong emotions in the polarized USA. It proposes that the tax cuts for mainly high-income earners, which Trump introduced during his previous term, become permanent. It also includes major investments in defense, efforts against illegal migration, and strengthened border security. Tax on overtime and tips is abolished and the ceiling for national debt is raised.
To finance this, significant cuts are made in the state health insurance Medicaid for low-income earners and people with disabilities. The program for state food stamps is also reduced. And predecessor Joe Biden's climate regulations and investments are torn up, including support for the electric car market.
The Congressional Budget Office, a politically independent body in the Capitol that reviews all budget proposals, has established that the Trump budget increases the US national debt by 3,300 billion dollars. Additionally, it is reported to pose a risk that 12 million Americans will lose their health insurance.
Some defections
The latter has made some in Trump's own party, the Republicans, hesitant. Some want to have a minimal state apparatus and reduced national debt in principle. Others come from states where the cuts in health insurance would have enormous significance, where their own chances of re-election are at stake.
In the Senate, where the debate is currently underway, the Republicans have a small majority with 53 of the 100 seats. But two Republican senators, Rand Paul and Thom Tillis, have announced that they will vote no, and the middle-oriented Lisa Murkowski and Susan Collins are hesitant.
North Carolina Senator Thom Tillis has been heavily criticized by Trump on social media and has already announced that he will not stand for re-election next year. The same applies to the Trump-critical Republican Don Bacon from Nebraska, writes the newspaper The Washington Post.
If the Senate votes through the budget, it goes to the House of Representatives, which must also approve it. The President has said that he wants to sign the budget on the US National Day, July 4.
