A half-dozen Republican senators bucked their party Thursday to support a Democratic effort to prohibit the construction of President Donald Trump’s yet-to-be-built East Wing ballroom without congressional approval.
Those six members were Sens. Susan Collins (R-ME), Lisa Murkowski (R-AK), Jerry Moran (R-KS), Dan Sullivan (R-AK), Thom Tillis (R-NC), and Jon Husted (R-OH). Still, the endeavor needed 60 votes and was defeated.
The undertaking came in the form of an amendment to the GOP’s $70 billion immigration enforcement bill that Republicans initially tried to use for $220 million in ballroom security funding for the project. However, they were ultimately forced to strip the money due to opposition and the strict rules of the filibuster-skirting reconciliation process being used.
The amendment would have banned federal funds and private donations from being used to construct the ballroom unless Trump received the green light from Congress. The tally was 52-47.
THREE REPUBLICANS BUCK GOP AS SENATE DEFEATS ATTEMPT TO BLOCK TRUMP ‘ANTI-WEAPONIZATION’ FUND
Collins, Husted, and Sullivan, who are all up for reelection in battleground states, were the three GOP senators who broke with their party on an earlier amendment to thwart the creation of the Justice Department’s “anti-weaponization” fund.
“Trump has fought for his ballroom harder than he’s ever fought to lower your costs,” the office of Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) said in a statement. “Congress should be a check on Trump’s corruption.”