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Trump’s Roy Problems

House Republicans have finally started to move on a budget bill that is expected to add trillions to the national debt. Now they must face down the usual right-flank hardliners and even contemplate the dreaded B-word (bipartisanship).

Chip Roy
Roy’s House colleagues now grumble that he acts as if the House is the Senate and any one member can hold up legislation. But in the House’s current micro-majority, he’s not necessarily wrong. Photo: Drew Angerer/Getty Images
Leigh Ann Caldwell
February 13, 2025

House Republicans remain consumed with internal drama regarding how they’re going to pass Donald Trump’s tax cuts and border security agenda. After months of debate and endless listening sessions, the current paralysis is stoking deep frustration with the usual conscientious objectors (Thomas Massie, Chip Roy, etcetera), as well as trepidation that Republicans are on track to prove yet again why their party struggles to govern even with a power trifecta in Washington. And yet, despite failing to achieve true consensus, the House has finally decided to move forward with their “one big beautiful” budget bill.