Senate border budget triumphs after all-night session while Trump-backed House bill lags

After hours of back-to-back voting on Democratic amendments, the bill to fund border security, energy and defense finally got its vote on the chamber floor. 

The measure passed by a vote of 52-48, and Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., was the only Republican to oppose. All Senate Democrats voted against it as well. 

The Senate voted on various amendments and points of order for nearly 10 hours, considering dozens of them on the floor. Ultimately, two Republican-led amendments were adopted. 

The leader and Republicans in the upper chamber started to move forward with the all-important budget reconciliation process earlier this month, pushing their preferred plan through a key committee and clearing a procedural hurdle. 

After its passage early Friday morning, Graham said in a statement, "As Senate Budget Committee Chairman, I'm incredibly pleased by the discipline shown by my Senate Republican colleagues to ensure that the most transformational border security bill in history can soon become a reality."

"I hope the House can pass one big bill that meets President Trump's priorities. But this approach provides money that we needed yesterday to continue the momentum on securing our border, enforcing our immigration laws, and rebuilding our military. Time is of the essence," he added. 

The decision to move forward with the Senate's alternative budget plan, which is two-pronged as opposed to the House's effort to pass one large bill, was blessed by Vice President JD Vance on Wednesday, a source told Fox News Digital.

Trump himself did not seem bothered by their effort either, posting on Truth Social, "Thank you to Majority Leader John Thune, and the Republican Senate, for working so hard on funding the Trump Border Agenda. We are setting records, the likes of which have never been seen before, on stopping criminal illegals aliens from entering our Country. Put simply, we are delivering for the American People, far faster and, more successfully, than anyone thought possible. Your work on funding this effort is greatly appreciated!"

The Senate's procedural vote earlier in the week triggered a 50-hour debate clock that ended on Thursday night. Then, a marathon of votes, known as a "Vote-a-Rama," began. 

"Tonight, one amendment at a time, Democrats exposed Republicans' true colors here on the Senate floor. For the first time this year, Senate Republicans were forced to go on record and defend their plans to cut taxes for Donald Trump's billionaire friends. What happened tonight was only the beginning. This debate is going to go on for weeks and maybe months. Democrats will be ready to come back and do this over and over again, because Americans deserve to know the truth," Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., said in a statement following the budget resolution's passage. 

"Again and again and again, Republicans sent a clear and consistent message from the Senate floor: under their agenda, billionaires win, and American families lose. If Republicans continue with this reckless plan to help their billionaire buddies at the expense of American families, Democrats will make sure the American people know the truth at every opportunity," the Democratic leader continued. 

In the Senate Republicans' budget plan, the first reconciliation bill includes Trump's priorities for border security, fossil fuel energy and national defense. The second bill, to be drawn up later in the year, would focus on extending Trump's tax policies from the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA). The cuts begin to expire at the end of 2025. 

By lowering the threshold for Senate passage from 60 votes to 51 out of 100, reconciliation allows the party in power to skirt its opposition to advance its agenda - provided the items included relate to budgetary and other fiscal matters. The House of Representatives already has a simple majority threshold.

The process is crucial for Republicans, who have a trifecta in Washington, to get key Trump goals accomplished. 

House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., has claimed that the Senate's first budget bill, along with its two-pronged approach, would be dead on arrival in the lower chamber. He has remained committed to including tax cuts in the bill with border security and other priorities. 

The House has managed to move their version through the appropriate committee, but a floor vote has yet to be scheduled.