Vice President J.D. Vance arrived at the Senate late Saturday evening to cast a tie-breaking vote on President Donald Trump’s sweeping “Big, Beautiful Bill,” a 940-page tax-and-spending package designed to offer broad tax relief ahead of the July 4 deadline. The GOP cannot afford to lose another Republican Senator and would need Vance to cast the deciding vote in a 50-50 tie —unless someone changes their vote.
He has ARRIVED @JDVance is about to break the tire for the Big Beautiful Bill!! pic.twitter.com/MYiz5sbmJ2
— Graham Allen (@GrahamAllen_1) June 29, 2025
Vance's arrival comes after the third Republican, Ron Johnson (WI), voted "No" on advancing Trump's Big Beautiful Bill.
🚨 BREAKING - CALLING VP JD VANCE! The 3RD REPUBLICAN, Ron Johnson (WI), just voted NO on advancing Trump's Big Beautiful Bill.
— Eric Daugherty (@EricLDaugh) June 28, 2025
That is 53 Republicans, MINUS 3, = 50.
If we want this thing to move forward, Mr. VP, you are needed! pic.twitter.com/I8WIvm428L
Fox is told Vance is talking to GOP senators who haven’t voted to work out issues. They will need all 4 who have not voted
— Chad Pergram (@ChadPergram) June 29, 2025
Hoeven on Vance: He’s on standby. If we need him::we're starting, and that means we're going to finish, and it could go into Monday morning..But the good news is, I believe we'll, we'll get it passed this weekend. That sets it up to get done by the Fourth of July, which is a…
— Chad Pergram (@ChadPergram) June 29, 2025
Republican Sens. Rand Paul (Ky.) and Thom Tillis (NC) have also voted against Trump's bill.
Tillis said that the Senate version of the One Big Beautiful bill contains significant changes to Medicaid that would be "devastating" to North Carolina, adding that he cannot support it.
Meanwhile, Paul raised concerns that the bill would significantly increase the national debt.
There are 53 Republicans in the Senate, meaning three Republican senators could opt out of voting for the bill, and it could still pass with Vance's support.
Vance is no stranger to breaking Senate deadlocks. Earlier this year, he cast tie-breaking votes to confirm President Trump’s nominee for Secretary of Defense, Pete Hegseth, in January, and again in April on legislation aimed at limiting the president’s authority to impose global tariffs.
Earlier on Saturday, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) forced the clerk to read the nearly 1,000-page bill aloud on the Senate floor—a process expected to take up to 15 hours. The move further delays a vote on President Trump’s legislation. Once the reading concludes, Republicans and Democrats will each have 10 hours—20 total—for debate on the "One Big Beautiful Bill" before entering the vote-a-rama. During this marathon session, senators can introduce an unlimited number of amendments, each of which requires a separate vote.