House Republicans' $95 billion Iran war package clears first hurdle
[July 17, 2026]
By LISA MASCARO
WASHINGTON (AP) — Republicans on the House Budget Committee advanced a
$95 billion package Thursday for the Iran war, farm aid and President
Donald Trump's push for strict new voter ID requirements, moving forward
on a party-line vote despite trouble in the full House — and the Senate.
Budget Committee Chairman Jodey Arrington framed the proposal as one
last push to deliver for voters ahead of the midterm elections that will
determine control of Congress. It advanced on a vote of 20-14.
"We are rallying to finish what we started when the American people sent
us here,” said Arrington, R-Texas.
With Iran war funding making up the bulk of the package, some $60
billion, Arrington acknowledged that people can debate “why we're there”
in the overseas conflict. But he said the money is needed for basic
supplies — "just the bombs, bullets and battlefield readiness for our
men and women in uniform to finish the fight successfully and return
home safely — that’s it."
The resolution, which sets out instructions for the various
congressional committees to draw up proposals, also calls for $13
billion for Intelligence, $12 billion for Agriculture, and $10 billion
for Administration, which handles voting and elections.
Speaker Johnson goes it alone, trying to push past Democrats
The proposal is the third budget reconciliation package Republicans in
control of Congress have put forward this session to steamroll Trump's
priorities past Democratic objections using a legislative procedure that
allows for simple majority votes for passage.
It's the same process House Speaker Mike Johnson used to pass Trump's
big tax cuts bill last year and to advance Homeland Security money after
Democrats refused to fund the department following the deaths of
Americans protesting Immigration and Customs Enforcement actions earlier
this year.
Johnson is pushing the effort almost single-handedly, without full
backing from his slim House Republican majority or the Senate. He held
lengthy meetings with Trump this week at the White House and hosted a
private session for Republicans at the president's Camp David retreat to
hash out details.
But the 47-page package remains a long-shot effort — too meager for
some, too costly for others — ahead of voting in the full House expected
next week.
Key Republican Rep. Chip Roy, an influential member of the Freedom
Caucus who has expressed reservations about the package, did not vote at
the Budget Committee session, as his home state of Texas deals with
flooding.
Democrats argue Americans are paying for Trump's plans
Democrats are ready to vote against the proposal, as they did Thursday
during committee action.
Rep. Brendan Boyle of Pennsylvania, the ranking Democrat on the Budget
Committee, said the document, some 6,500 words, never once mentions the
issue that's top of mind for many Americans: affordability.
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House Budget Committee Chairman Jodey Arrington, R-Texas, center,
speaks with an aide during a markup on the Fiscal Year 2027 spending
plan, at the Capitol in Washington, Thursday, July 16, 2026. (AP
Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)
“People know this is a failed presidency, and a failed Republican
majority,” Boyle said.
Democrats offered more than a dozen amendments to the package during
the hourslong Budget Committee session and raised questions about
how the new spending will ultimately be paid for — either via budget
cuts to other programs or by piling onto the nation's debt.
Boyle offered an amendment to reverse healthcare cuts from the
Republicans' big tax breaks bill. Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., sought
to reinstate funding for food stamps under the Supplemental
Nutrition Assistance Program. Rep. Scott Peters, D-Calif., suggested
funding for immigration enforcement at Department of Homeland
Security could be used to offset costs elsewhere.
Rep. Lloyd Doggett, D-Texas, blamed the high costs of living on the
Iran war and said every time Americans open their refrigerators or
go to the gas pump they are “paying for a war that should never have
been started.”
Senate pans House plan, leaving next steps uncertain
Next steps are highly volatile, as the House holds a rare Saturday
pro forma session, which is a largely administrative meeting that
will allow the resolution to be filed in time for consideration next
week.
Johnson can only lose a few detractors on his side of the aisle as
he relies on Republicans only, without Democrats, for passage.
But the resolution would also have to be agreed on by the Senate,
and Republican senators have largely panned the House effort,
waiting to see if Johnson can heave it to passage.
Senate Majority Leader John Thune said senators have “a lot of
questions” about it – from defense hawks concerned about the
military to deficit hawks who want to offset costs.
“It’s a very uneven path,” he said. “We’ll see what the House can
execute on,” he said, but “I can’t make any guarantees over here.”
Sen. Ron Johnson, R-Wis., who is expected to take over the Senate
Budget Committee after the sudden death of Sen. Lindsey Graham, has
been a leading budget hawk concerned about the nation's rising
deficits.
The House plans to have its committees work on bill text over the
August recess and bring the whole package back to the floor for a
final vote in the fall.
___
Associated Press writer Mary Clare Jalonick contributed to this
report.
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