President-elect Trump on Monday said he would prefer Congress pass his agenda on energy, taxes and immigration in one reconciliation bill but would be open to breaking it up over two pieces of legislation, hedging his position as Republicans chart a path forward.
“While I favor one bill, I also want to get everything passed. And there are some people that don’t necessarily agree with it, so I’m open to that also,” Trump told conservative radio host Hugh Hewitt on his show.
“My preference is one big — as I say, one big beautiful bill. Now to do that takes longer. To submit it takes longer, actually,” Trump continued. “So it’s a longer process, I would say. I’d live with that. To me it’s just a — it’s cleaner. It’s nicer.”
But Trump also said he would be open to a two-bill approach advocated by Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.), Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) and some other lawmakers who have suggested first passing a reconciliation package focused on securing the border and tackling tax policy in a second bill later in the year.
“I would prefer one, but I will do whatever needs to be done to get it passed. And you know, we have a lot of respect for Sen. Thune, as you know. He may have a little bit of a different view of it,” Trump said. “I heard other senators yesterday, including Lindsey, talking about it. They prefer it the other way. I’m open to either way, as long as we get something passed as quickly as possible.”
Trump told Hewitt he was not overly concerned about passing a border security measure right away, noting his “border czar,” Tom Homan, would work to crack down on illegal immigration.
The president-elect’s comments are likely to fuel further debate among Republicans about which approach is best to pass his agenda early in his second term.
He told Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) over the weekend that he wanted lawmakers to pass one reconciliation bill containing key pieces of his agenda, something Trump reiterated in a social media post Sunday.
Johnson told Fox News on Sunday that he was aiming for the House to vote on the reconciliation package in the first week of April.
Passing legislation via the reconciliation process would require a simple majority in both chambers of Congress, meaning Republicans would not require any Democratic support, but everything included must affect spending or revenue levels.
