The US House of Representatives approved a $95 billion budget framework on Wednesday, with most of the funds earmarked for the Pentagon to finance the war against Iran.
The measure narrowly passed on a 216-214 vote and now heads to the Senate, where its fate is uncertain.
The plan provides $73 billion for the armed forces and intelligence agencies, specifically to fund operations related to the war against Iran, as well as $12 billion in aid for farmers affected by President Donald Trump’s trade war.
An additional $10 billion would go toward election-related programs as part of Trump’s push to pass new nationwide voting restrictions, while his broader “SAVE America Act” lacks enough support to continue.
The budget package represents the party’s last major legislative push before November’s midterm elections, the outcome of which will determine whether the party retains its majority in Congress and thus continues to shape the remainder of Trump’s second term.
Budget framework
The resolution, which for now is only a budget framework, would allow House Republicans — if approved by the Senate — to draft detailed legislation later this summer.
The goal would then be to try to pass it in the Senate with a simple majority using an expedited budget procedure, thereby bypassing the usual 60-vote threshold and Democratic opposition.
House Speaker Mike Johnson said the measure passed Wednesday “puts congressional Republicans on a path toward accomplishing two fundamentally simple and crucial goals: securing American elections and strengthening our homeland.”
Democratic Representative Rosa DeLauro, meanwhile, denounced a measure that would allow Trump to fund his continued war against Iran.
“The American people do not want more open, aimless, expensive and deadly wars in the Middle East. They want the price of basic necessities like food, shelter, health care, child care and gasoline to go down,” she said.
The cost of living in the United States is a central issue in the run-up to the midterm elections, as inflation remains persistent.
