House GOP's parting message for Senate on reconciliation

House GOP leaders are turning up the heat on Senate Republicans, calling on them to move quickly on the House's https://www.axios.com/2026/07/22/house-republicans-reconciliation-iran-funding-save-act" target="_blank">$95 billion reconciliation package despite resistance from Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.).

Why it matters: Before they split town, House leaders left some instructions for their Senate colleagues.

• "The Senate needs to move on reconciliation before November, and I think the pressure from the American people is going to be unbearable if they refuse to act," NRCC Chair https://www.axios.com/2026/06/09/hudson-trump-midterms-iran-prices" target="_blank">Richard Hudson (R-N.C.) told Axios on Thursday.
• "For the Senate to sit on their hands and do nothing, I think, will be unsustainable."

Driving the news: Thune poured cold water on the House's timeline, telling reporters this week that he plans to wait until government funding is resolved before taking up the budget resolution.

• The reconciliation measure would give billions for the war in Iran, farm assistance and include components of the SAVE America Act.

House Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-La.) told Axios in a pen-and-pad session Thursday that he expects the White House to ramp up pressure on the Senate.

• "They can say all day long, you know, 'It's going to be hard.' Everything's hard.

  Give me a lecture about how hard things are.

  That's what I do every day.

  They've got to figure out a way to get it done," Scalise told Axios of his colleagues in the Senate.

• Scalise said the reconciliation package — because it only requires a simple majority — means Senate Republicans won't have the "excuse of the filibuster" to avoid passing the SAVE Act.

White House Press Secretary https://x.com/cspan/status/2080334747402654091" target="_blank">Karoline Leavitt said Trump's "patience is running out" with Thune during a press briefing Thursday when asked about SAVE.

• "Well, maybe she or somebody else ought to get on the phone and get the votes," Thune told reporters when asked about the comments.

Between the lines: Thune has become a favorite target of House conservatives, who have spent months trying to shame him into taking up the SAVE Act.

• Thune has repeatedly said he doesn't have the votes.
• "He seems to be doing his best to try to pretend he's working on the SAVE America Act while not working on the SAVE America Act," Rep. Michael Cloud (R-Texas) told Axios.