The Senate passed its budget resolution 50-48 on April 23, 2026, clearing the way for a full reconciliation bill that Republicans have promised will fund a $70 billion expansion of immigration enforcement. The "pay-fors" listed in the resolution read like a checklist of what the American safety net is made of: Medicaid, SNAP, and other health and housing assistance programs.
Only two Republicans voted no. Senator Lisa Murkowski of Alaska cited concern about the cuts to her constituents. Senator Rand Paul of Kentucky objected on fiscal grounds, arguing the resolution did not do enough to cut spending overall. Every other Republican senator voted yes.
What the Resolution Actually Does
S.Con.Res.33 is a budget framework, not a spending bill. What it does is unlock the reconciliation process, which lets Republicans pass legislation with a simple majority in the Senate, bypassing the 60-vote filibuster threshold. Think of it as the starting gun for a sprint toward deep cuts.
The resolution directs the Judiciary and Homeland Security Committees to find $70 billion in savings to fund immigration enforcement. The Center on Budget and Policy Priorities has analyzed the math: there is no realistic way to reach those numbers without cutting Medicaid and SNAP. Republicans have previewed this by calling the cuts "waste, fraud, and abuse elimination."
That is not an accounting adjustment. Medicaid covers roughly 80 million Americans, including children, seniors, and people with disabilities. SNAP feeds more than 42 million people. These are not obscure line items.
Susan Collins Voted Yes
Republican Senator Susan Collins of Maine has built a career on the reputation of the moderate who breaks ranks. She voted yes. Collins has previously said she would oppose Medicaid cuts, a position she repeated as recently as February 2026. Her yes vote on the reconciliation framework, which explicitly opens the door to exactly those cuts, drew no meaningful self-contradiction statement from her office.
Collins' moderation is a political brand. This week, it was not a voting record.
What Happens Next
The resolution now moves to the House, where it must also pass before committees can write the actual reconciliation bill. President Trump has set a June 1 deadline for final passage. Speaker Mike Johnson has indicated he wants the House to move quickly.
If both chambers adopt the framework, committees will spend May drafting legislation with binding cut targets. The final bill would then come before the full Senate in a vote where the filibuster cannot apply. Democrats cannot stop it. The two Republicans who voted no cannot stop it either. The math only works if three or more Republicans break ranks on the actual legislation.
The Accountability Is Designed to Be Invisible
The 50 senators who voted yes did not vote to cut Medicaid in explicit terms. They voted to create the mechanism to do so. That is how this works: accountability is diffused at each procedural step, so that no single vote looks like a vote to take away a child's healthcare. But the chain of votes is traceable, from framework to committee markup to final passage.
Senators Murkowski and Paul created a small opening in the wall. Every other Republican senator sealed it shut. The bill is heading to the House.
Sources
- Senate votes to kickstart partisan funding process for ICE — NPR
- Senate Reconciliation Amendment Would Cut Hundreds of Billions From Medicaid — Center on Budget and Policy Priorities
- Unreconciled Differences on Medicaid Cuts in Reconciliation — KFF
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