Republican spending hawks in the House of Representatives are pushing their leaders to include at least $2.5 trillion in spending cuts in a massive piece of legislation intended to advance President Donald Trump’s agenda.

Republicans held their weekly closed-door agenda meeting on Wednesday where they discussed a path forward via the budget reconciliation process. 

By lowering the threshold in the Senate from two-thirds to a simple majority – which the House already operates under – reconciliation allows the party in power to pass sweeping fiscal policy changes while skirting the opposition.

Several sources told Fox News Digital there was significant ‘frustration’ within the House GOP conference on Wednesday over a lack of a concrete final plan from Republican leadership. 

One GOP lawmaker said that tension bubbled up with several ‘heated exchanges,’ with conservatives demanding a concrete plan and minimum spending cuts at significantly higher levels than what was initially proposed.

‘I think there’s a lot of frustration right now,’ the lawmaker told Fox News Digital. ‘They’ve been trying to be inclusive, but not every open forum they’ve offered is giving members the ability to say, ‘I feel like people are listening to me,’ because I don’t know that’s the case right now.’

There’s also concern that the Senate, which is growing impatient with the House, could move forward with its own plan if the House doesn’t release one first – which House Republicans worry will include much shallower spending cuts than what could pass in the lower chamber.

‘What we’re worried about is losing the opportunity. I think we’re more likely to cut than they are,’ a second GOP lawmaker said.

Senate Budget Committee Chairman Lindsey Graham R-S.C., announced plans to move forward with the upper chamber’s own bill on Wednesday afternoon. He now plans to advance a measure through his committee next week.

A third House Republican said GOP lawmakers were fed up waiting for a ‘play call.’

But senior House GOP aides pushed back on the notion there was no play call, pointing out that Republican leaders held countless listening sessions culminating at the recent three-day House GOP retreat in Miami to consult members and emerge with a blueprint for a one-bill strategy that maintains scoring flexibility. The aides said the reconciliation process has had a 95% participation rate among House Republicans.

House GOP leaders were forced to delay a key vote on advancing a reconciliation bill through the House Budget Committee, the first step in the process, after spending hawks pushed back on initial proposals for spending cuts between $300 billion and $600 billion.

House Majority Leader Steve Scalise, R-La., said on Tuesday night that it would likely be planned for next week, but that leaders’ final goal of having a bill on Trump’s desk in May remained unimpeded. 

Three sources told Fox News Digital that leaders are floating a plan that would include roughly $1.65 trillion as a baseline for spending cuts, though two people stressed they saw the figure as one of several tentative ideas rather than a final plan.

Two other sources said it would also include measures that lead to an additional $1.65 trillion in economic growth.

Republicans are trying to pass a broad swath of Trump policies via reconciliation, from more funding for border security to eliminating taxes on tips and overtime wages. Trump has also made clear that he views extending his Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) of 2017 as vital to the process.

The tax cuts have proved a sticking point with some spending hawks, however, because several estimates show they could add upwards of $1 trillion to the federal deficit over 10 years if extended. Those spending hawks have said they support extending the tax cuts but are seeking deep funding rollbacks elsewhere to offset them.

Three people involved in the discussions also told Fox News Digital that House GOP leaders are considering extending the TCJA tax cuts by five years instead of 10 to mitigate those concerns.

Reps. Chip Roy, R-Texas, and Ralph Norman, R-S.C., two conservative members of the House Budget Committee, both told reporters they wanted to see the baseline for spending cuts set at roughly $2.5 trillion.

Roy told reporters that $2.5 trillion would amount to roughly $250 billion per year in federal savings over 10 years – while pointing out the U.S. was currently running a $36 trillion national debt.

House GOP leaders vowed to seek $2.5 trillion in spending cuts back in December, to get conservatives on board with a bill averting a partial government shutdown.

‘They said $2.5 trillion of cuts. So, deliver. That will unlock the door,’ Roy said.

Norman told reporters multiple times this week that he wants between $2 trillion and $3 trillion in cuts.

Staffers and contractors who work with the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) were stunned and angered after President Donald Trump and the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) – the government accountability unit headed by billionaire Elon Musk – effectively shut down the $40 billion agency on Monday.

One USAID staffer who wished to remain anonymous told Fox News Digital that 80% of staff across its bureaus learned they lost access to the agency’s systems on Monday morning, including travel, communications, classified information and databases – leading to questions about how to repatriate American citizens in some of the most dangerous places in the world should the need arise.

Staffers also feel they were ‘left high and dry’ and ‘have no idea what to do or where to turn’ after being ‘abandoned by Congress and the government,’ the source said, adding they felt the agency was ‘hostilely taken over by DOGE.’ 

‘The richest man in the world is taking this away from the poorest people in the world,’ the source said of Musk.

USAID was set up in the early 1960s to act on behalf of the U.S. to deliver aid across the globe, particularly in impoverished and underdeveloped regions. The Trump administration alleges that much of the spending has been wasteful, promoting a liberal agenda around the world. 

DOGE has particularly criticized a $1.5 million program slated to ‘advance diversity, equity and inclusion in Serbia’s workplaces and business communities’ and a $70,000 program for a ‘DEI musical’ in Ireland.

Democrats counter that the agency plays a vital role in U.S. national security interests and say it should remain independent. They point to the work USAID did to counter Soviet influence during the Cold War – a sphere of influence that could remain a concern amid China’s Belt and Road Initiative.

‘It’s not a generosity project,’ the source said of USAID, ‘this is a national security agency and effort at its core’ that ‘protects borders and cuts threats off,’ such as working to contain Ebola and dispersing COVID vaccines to keep such threats outside the U.S.

Musk has said that both he and Trump ‘agreed’ that the agency should be ‘shut down.’ Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who has been named acting director of the independent agency, on Monday echoed the sentiment, telling reporters, ‘USAID is not functioning.’

‘It needs to be aligned with the national interest of the U.S. They’re not a global charity, these are taxpayer dollars. People are asking simple questions. What are they doing with the money?’ Rubio continued. ‘We are spending taxpayers’ money. We owe the taxpayers assurances that it furthers our national interest.’

The scope of work overseen by USAID is vast and ranges from administering foreign aid through humanitarian efforts like famine relief, clean water distribution programs, and medical services, including administering polio vaccines, HIV/AIDS relief and prevention work. It also bolsters democracy, human rights and governance initiatives.

The source said the stop work order has left medications for HIV and even vaccines meant for distribution in overseas regions sitting on shelves, saying, ‘It has all stopped.’

Steve Schmida, who runs global consulting firm Resonance, which competes for contracts with USAID, told Fox News Digital that the shutdown is impacting contractors in the form of layoffs, furloughs and a reduction in hours. He also said the stop-work order has prevented his employees from getting paid for work they’ve already done.

Schmida said DOGE is ‘controlling payments’ by taking over the payment system. He accused the Musk-led agency of ‘intentionally defrauding us.’

‘If not stopped, it will spread to the rest of the government,’ Schmida said, adding that the Trump administration’s DOGE could use its takeover of the payment system as ‘a weapon against American citizens, denying Social Security and Medicare if they step out of line.’

Schmida said the foreign assistance community recognizes and shares the desire to reform the system, stating it ‘could work a lot better,’ though he urged the government to work toward improvement rather than the destruction of an agency whose work has been built up over seven decades.

Fox News’ Caitlin McFall contributed to this report.

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt slammed Democrats Wednesday for their criticism of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), calling it ‘unacceptable’ and ‘incredibly alarming.’ 

‘Some elected Democrats are so steamed about DOGE – Congresswoman LaMonica McIver says we are at war. Ilhan Omar says we might actually see somebody get killed. And Chris Van Hollen says we have to fight this in the Congress, we have to fight this in the streets. So what now?’ Leavitt was asked by Fox News’ senior White House correspondent Peter Doocy. 

‘It’s unacceptable, the comments that have been made by these Democrat leaders, and frankly, they don’t even know what they’re talking about, because President Trump was elected with a mandate from the American people to make this government more efficient,’ Leavitt responded. 

‘He campaigned across this country with Elon Musk vowing that Elon was going to head up the Department of Government Efficiency and the two of them with a great team around them were going to look at the receipts of this federal government and ensure it’s accountable to American taxpayers. That’s all that is happening here,’ Leavitt continued. ‘And for Democrat officials to incite violence and encourage Americans to take to the streets, is incredibly alarming, and they should be held accountable for that rhetoric.’ 

Leavitt also said during her daily White House press briefing, ‘If you heard that type of violent, enticing rhetoric from our side of the aisle, from Republican leaders on Capitol Hill, I think there would be a lot more outrage in this room today.’ 

On Tuesday, Sen. Chris Van Hollen, D-Md., said, ‘What we are witnessing here is the biggest heist in American history.’ 

‘This is the most corrupt bargain we’ve ever seen in American history: Elon Musk gives $250 million to elect Donald Trump, and Donald Trump turns over the keys to United States government to Elon Musk and his billionaire friends and his cronies,’ Van Hollen said during a protest outside the Treasury Department in Washington, D.C. 

‘Are we going to let that stand? Hell no, we are not going to let that stand,’ Van Hollen added, later vowing, ‘We have to fight this in the courts, we have to fight this in the Congress, we have to fight this in the streets. We need to fight this all over America.’ 

‘Shut down the city! We are at war!’ Rep. LaMonica McIver, D-N.J., shouted into a microphone. 

On Monday morning, hundreds of employees for the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) reported they were locked out of the agency’s computer system and that its headquarters in Washington, D.C., was closed on Monday.  

The agency’s fate is hanging in the balance as DOGE is working on an apparent overhaul of the agency. 

‘The level of disrespect actually is criminal because there are crisis response teams that are around the world that really rely on having access to their emails – having access to apps that they can utilize if there’s danger to them,’ Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., told MSNBC, according to The Hill. ‘All of those accesses are cut off.’  

‘So we might actually see somebody get killed. An American who works for the American government might be harmed in some of those countries that they’re operating in,’ she reportedly added. 

Fox News’ Emma Colton and Louis Casiano contributed to this report. 

: The Senate will look to beat House Republicans to the punch next week on plans to enact President Donald Trump’s agenda via the budget reconciliation process.

Ahead of a weekly lunch meeting hosted by Senate Steering Committee Chairman Rick Scott, R-Fla., a plan was unveiled by Senate Budget Committee Chairman Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., to push for a committee vote next week on a first bill, with plans for an additional reconciliation bill later in the year, a Senate Republican source told Fox News Digital. 

The first bill would include Trump’s priorities for border security, fossil fuel energy and national defense. The second bill would focus on extending Trump’s tax policies from the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA).

Senior White House staffers were also present at the Wednesday lunch, the source said.

It comes amid some infighting within the House GOP about what level of spending cuts to seek in order to offset the costs of Trump’s priorities. An expected vote this week to advance a resolution through the House Budget Committee is now likely poised for next week as well.

The first step in the reconciliation process is marking up and advancing a bill through the Senate and House budget committees.

House leaders had intended to make the first move in the process. The Senate passing their own bill first, however, would essentially force the lower chamber to contend with whatever product comes from the other side of Capitol Hill rather than start from a position of their own choosing.

It would also shift gears to a two-pronged reconciliation bill blueprint, something opposed by the House Ways & Means Committee and House GOP leaders.

Proponents of the one-bill approach are concerned about leaving Trump’s tax cuts, which expire at the end of this year, on the back burner. House Ways & Means Committee Chairman Jason Smith, R-Mo., previously referenced the fact that Republicans have not passed two reconciliation bills in one year since the 1990s, when they had a much larger majority.

Trump has said he prefers ‘one big, beautiful bill,’ but would be open to two.

Graham has notably been liaising with the House Freedom Caucus leaders on the subject all week, two sources told Fox News Digital. The caucus has preferred a two-pronged approach, in line with many Senate Republicans. 

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.

But with razor-thin margins in the House and Senate, Republicans can afford precious little dissent to still get their priorities over the finish line.

Spending hawks on the House Budget Committee had balked at multiple offers by GOP leaders on a ‘floor’ for cutting back federal funding, calling for the baseline to be set at least at $2 trillion.

They’re also seeking assurances that House GOP leaders have a firm plan in place for those cuts.

Multiple House Republicans leaving their Wednesday morning conference meeting signaled they were growing anxious about the Senate jamming them with their own reconciliation bill.

‘I think there’s a lot of frustration right now,’ one House GOP lawmaker said. ‘There’s some concern now that if we don’t move forward with something soon, that the Senate is going to jam us.’

‘What we’re worried about is losing the opportunity. I think we’re more likely to cut than they are,’ a second GOP lawmaker said.

Johnson brushed off concerns that the Senate will act first in comments to reporters earlier this week, maintaining the House will take the initial step.

The Senate chair of the DOGE Caucus is exposing a ‘demonstrated pattern of obstructionism’ at the U.S.’ top aid agency in a letter to Secretary of State Marco Rubio.

Sen. Joni Ernst, R-Iowa, outlined how the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) has been ‘stonewalling’ her office for years as she sought documents to ensure taxpayer dollars weren’t wasted at the agency, which is now under the microscope of billionaire Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE). 

‘USAID’s spending shows a blatant disregard for the wishes of American taxpayers, and it is time to disrupt the system,’ Ernst told Fox News Digital. ‘The agency has been wasting millions of tax dollars on things like tourism in Lebanon, Sesame Street in Iraq, sending Ukrainians to Paris Fashion Week and so much more.’

In one instance, the Iowa Republican claims USAID misled her staff to believe that details about funds going to businesses in Ukraine were classified, funds that in some instances were used for travel to fashion shows and film festivals. 

In 2024, after months of delays, USAID finally agreed to offer Ernst’s staff a review of recipients of taxpayer-funded assistance to businesses in Ukraine, according to the letter. 

But the agency insisted the documents be reviewed in a sensitive compartmented information facility (SCIF), suggesting the records would be classified. 

‘These requirements were all presented to my staff under the false pretense that this data was classified,’ Ernst wrote to Rubio. ‘Only after demanding to speak to your USAID Office of Security, my staff uncovered that this data was, in fact, unclassified.’

Ernst said that based on her staff’s review, it appears that over 5,000 Ukrainian businesses received U.S. taxpayer-funded assistance, with awards of up to $2 million each. 

That trade assistance was in some instances used to bankroll business owners attending glamorous film festivals and fashion shows in cities like Berlin, Paris and Las Vegas. 

She also accused the agency of ‘misleading’ her office on the costs of indirect aid. Negotiated indirect cost agreements (NICRA) allowed contractors to use more than 25 percent of the total award on costs like ‘rent for a partner’s corporate headquarters, advocacy costs, and other miscellaneous expenses.’

READ ERNST’S LETTER BELOW. APP USERS: CLICK HERE

Ernst said her staff reached out in November 2022 asking USAID for information on NICRAs with grant recipients. The agency responded, ‘USAID does not have a system to track or report on this data, as it is not possible to compare indirect costs between for-profit and nonprofit organizations,’ according to Ernst. 

In February 2023, Ernst followed up with a link to a publicly reported NICRA database that USAID confirmed does exist.

The agency then said that it ‘protects the confidential business information of its implementing partners, including NICRAs… outside the scope of a formal oversight request by a committee of jurisdiction.’

Then, Ernst partnered with former House Foreign Affairs Chairman Michael McCaul to give USAID the request from a ‘committee of jurisdiction.’ 

‘Even then, USAID refused to permit my staff to acquire the documents or take substantive notes on the NICRA rates. The lack of transparency was alarming because the NICRA rates far exceeded staff’s expected range of indirect costs allowed.’

Ernst said: ‘In the wake of this series of significant misjudgments and oversight obstruction by USAID, it is of the utmost importance to conduct a full and independent analysis of the recipients of USAID assistance.’

She also pointed to Chemonics, a government contractor that USAID’s inspector general found over-billed the U.S. government by $270 million through fiscal year 2019. Chemonics led a $9.5 billion USAID project to improve global health supply chains that, ‘led to 41 arrests and 31 indictments related to illicit resale of USAID funded commodities on the black market, and fueled ongoing allegations that Chemonics falsely portrays its projects’ outcomes to secure future contracts with USAID,’ Ernst wrote. 

‘No more stonewalling,’ said Ernst. ‘We need to scrutinize every last dollar being spent by this rogue agency.’

In a notice posted on its website Tuesday night, USAID announced that all direct hire staff would be placed on leave globally, except for designated personnel responsible for mission-critical functions, core leadership and specially designated programs. 

The Trump administration is now exploring merging the agency with the State Department and Rubio has been appointed its acting director. 

Rubio told reporters in El Salvador the ‘functions of USAID’ must align with foreign policy and called it a ‘a completely unresponsive agency.’

Democratic lawmakers, meanwhile, staged a protest outside the USAID headquarters on Tuesday, arguing that the agency is essential for flexing U.S. soft power throughout the world, preventing and monitoring disease outbreaks, and safeguarding U.S. national security.

‘USAID is the backbone of America’s soft power, helping to stabilize fragile regions and protect U.S. interests abroad,’ said Reps. Greg Meeks, top Democrat on the Foreign Affairs Committee, and Sara Jacobs,Calif., top Democrat on the Africa subcommittee. 

‘Weakening it will fuel global crises, endanger American security, embolden other nations like China and Russia, and leave the Trump Administration solely responsible for the fallout.’