Trump Team Adamant About July 4 Megabill Deadline

President Donald Trump and his White House team reportedly see the July 4 deadline for Congress to produce the president's signature tax cut and spending legislation as being nonnegotiable.

That means three weeks remain for the Senate to make its changes, then send the bill to the House for approval before Trump can sign it.

Based on where things are in the Senate, and the usual business involved for Congress to produce final legislation, that deadline appears unrealistic, skeptics note.

The Trump White House, though, could not care less about normalities.

"We are targeting the week of July 4 for final passage," a Trump administration official told Politico.

Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., told reporters Wednesday he will force senators to remain in Washington over the July 4 recess to pass the One Big Beautiful Bill Act.

Republican leadership in the Senate had been hoping to pass the bill before the recess begins June 27. Senators are set to be back home from June 28 through July 6, The Hill reported.

Many issues reportedly remain, disagreements over the extent of cuts to such things as clean-energy tax credits, changes to Medicaid, and concerns about the federal deficit.

Not only that, Thune must work with House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., who according to Politico is "already groaning at every change being entertained for the bill that barely passed his chamber last month."

Trump and his team do not want to hear any excuses.

"I think ultimately a lot of members are wish-casting different structures to permit more of their own priorities, and certainly that's something that senators are welcome to do," the administration official said.

"[But] the president's priorities are not negotiable in this process."

White House officials are pressuring senators to produce a bill that basically gets rubber stamped by the House and forgoes the usual weeks of "conferencing."

They definitely do not want a "pingpong," which means House members making further changes that would require the legislation being sent again to the Senate.

"There's not going to be a pingpong or a conference," the official said.

Trying telling that to senators, including those who have supported Trump.

"The Senate is going to do what it damn well wants to do," Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, said during a Punchbowl News event Wednesday.