Trump says it 'doesn’t matter' how GOP passes his agenda: 'The end result is the same’

President-elect Trump on Wednesday said “it doesn’t matter” whether Republicans on Capitol Hill tackle his top priorities on taxes, energy and the border in one package or two as the party tries to nail down its plan for the coming months.

“We had a great meeting. There’s great unity. Whether it’s one bill or two bills, it’s going to get done one way or the other,” Trump told reporters following a meeting with Senate Republicans Wednesday evening.

“I think there’s a lot of talk about two, and there’s a lot of talk about one, but it doesn’t matter. The end result is the same,” he continued, hailing the meeting as “really unified” and “very strong.”

“We’ll get something done,” he added.

Privately, however, senators said Trump expressed a strong preference for one bill, often pushing back on senators during the meeting.

Republicans are set to have control of the Senate, House and White House and are aiming to pass large swaths of Trump's agenda through a maneuver known as reconciliation, which would bypass a Senate filibuster and eliminate the need to win Democratic votes.

But there has been an ongoing battle between Senate and House GOP leaders over whether to divide those priorities into two packages, or try to pass them all at once.

Senate Republicans have argued that a two-bill process would allow the party to score a major political win earlier in Trump's term, with a package featuring energy and border provisions done within the first two months of Trump’s inauguration.

Across the Capitol, House leaders have say that with their slim margin, they might only have one bite at the apple and that a massive, all-inclusive reconciliation bill might be their best hope for advancing the party’s agenda.

Trump himself had caused some confusion earlier this week, first by calling for “one powerful bill,” before saying a day later that he was open to a two-bill track.

Trump on Wednesday also addressed a number of other items, telling reporters that he did not sense any “pushback” from Senate Republicans about his calls to militarily acquire Greenland and the Panama Canal. He also likened Donald Trump Jr.’s recent visit to Greenland to “a lovefest.”

Denmark has maintained that the arctic nation is not for sale.

Trump also indicated that he believes he can work with California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) to help rebuild portions of the state that are being ravaged by wildfires despite their contentious relationship.

“What’s happened is a tragedy, and the governor has not done a good job. With that being said, I got along well with him when he was governor. We worked together very well and we would work together. I guess it looks like we’re going to be the one having to rebuild it," he said.

“But what happened there — I don’t think there’s anything that I’ve ever seen,” he added.

Topics

Trump and Senate Republicans still divided on how to implement his agenda

President-elect Donald Trump is meeting with Senate Republicans to try to get lawmakers "on the same page" on how to advance some of his major policy initiatives.
ABC News - 12h
Morning Report — Trump, Senate GOP try to get on the same page

In today’s issue: Republicans’ 2025 legislative playbook is taking shape. President-elect Trump on Wednesday met with Senate Republicans in the Capitol, after he and Melania Trump paid their ...
The Hill - 3h
Trump, GOP senators wrestle over strategy for president-elect's agenda

President-elect Trump and Republican senators wrestled over the best strategy for moving Trump’s top agenda items, including border security and tax relief, during a two-hour meeting at the Capitol ...
The Hill - 12h
Trump meets with GOP senators on Capitol Hill to push legislative agenda

President-elect Donald Trump met with Republican senators Wednesday night on Capitol Hill to discuss his "big beautiful bill" and all the pieces of his agenda it could hold. CBS News' Caitlin ...
CBS News - 16h
Freedom Caucus holds its fire on Johnson’s strategy for passing Trump agenda

Members of the conservative House Freedom Caucus are holding their fire despite Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) bucking their preferred strategy for passing President-elect Trump’s agenda, arguing ...
The Hill - 1d
What we’re watching: Settling on a strategy to pass Trump's agenda

Politico - 2d
Trump comments deepen GOP disagreement over how to pass his agenda

President-elect Trump’s public back-and-forth over whether Republicans should pass his agenda in one or two massive packages is deepening the disagreements among lawmakers over how to tackle the ...
The Hill - 2d
Trump calls on GOP to pass his agenda in 'one powerful bill'

President-elect Trump on Sunday made public his support for Republican lawmakers to pass key components of his agenda into law with a single reconciliation bill, previewing what is expected to be a ...
The Hill - 3d
Johnson says he expects to pass most of Trump's agenda with 1 'big, beautiful bill' by Memorial Day

Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) said Sunday he expects to pass President-elect Trump’s agenda through one big reconciliation package before Memorial Day. In an interview on Fox News’s “Sunday Morning ...
The Hill - 3d