Rep. Ralph Norman (R-SC), one of the Freedom Caucus members initially against the bill, said “we held out as long as we could” during a Thursday interview on CNBC.

Norman said a hands-on President Donald Trump and the White House offered “assurances” they’d address additional hangups, including dropped changes to wind and solar project permitting, via executive action.

House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) and Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-LA) also accelerated discussions of a second reconciliation bill for fiscal year 2026 in the fall.

Johnson first mentioned this possible second package early last month. In an interview with Sean Hannity on Tuesday night, Johnson even said the House would attempt a third reconciliation package for fiscal year 2027 before the 119th Congress ends.

Scalise also reiterated this week that there’s an opportunity for a second budget bill to address priorities left out in the “big, beautiful bill.”

Rep. Chip Roy (R-TX), once a vocal “no,” signaled the second reconciliation bill was a factor.

“I don’t think it’ll be as big. I think there’ll be some targeted stuff,” Roy told the New York Post. “I think there’s a good chance of that.” 

Senior White House officials declined to answer questions about the specifics of any deals Trump cut with holdouts this week to secure passage in the House.

Johnson said in a victory press conference that there weren’t any “specific commitments or concessions,” instead stating that the holdouts wanted to simply chat with the administration about their concerns and understand portions of the legislation.

Still, thanks to full-court press from the White House and leadership, the turnaround was notable.

On Wednesday morning, House GOP had more than a dozen members vowing to vote “no,” but by late Wednesday night, all but one member came around to vote for the procedural rule. 

Fiscal hawks expressed anger over the Senate’s failure to adhere to the budget resolution passed earlier this year despite a verbal promise from Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD). These members said they should have asked for something more concrete so that the bill would most resemble the version passed by the House.

But for all their bluster, members of the Freedom Caucus fell in line.

Nine holdouts, including Roy, Freedom Caucus chairman Andy Harris (R-MD), and Reps. Michael Cloud (R-TX), Eric Burlison (R-MO), and Scott Perry (R-PA) held up a vote on an amendment to the rule. But all of them eventually caved and voted for the amendment, the rule, and final passage.

Holdouts met with leadership and the White House leading up to the bill’s passage, with only two Republicans voting against it.

“A lot of these discussions were about what executive orders will be forthcoming as it relates to new legislation, and how can we be involved as a House and codify that and do all that in a coordinated fashion,” Johnson said of his talks with the holdouts.

The entire Republican conference applauded when the bill passed, with several shaking Johnson’s hand and giving him a clap on the back. Many committee leaders were excited that their monthslong work was over and that holdouts had come around.

“I think Chip [Roy] and Ralph [Norman] and those guys have worked hard in the 11th Hour and 59th second to improve it, so I’m anxious to see all the gains that they’ve made,” House Budget Chairman Jodey Arrington (R-TX) told the Washington Examiner Thursday morning. 

“These are commitments I’m sure from the White House, not on the bill per se, but on administrative actions, and I don’t have any doubt that they’re going to be good, and they’ll make this better,” Arrington continued. 

Reps. Tim Burchett (R-TN) told reporters many of his concerns were “about the energy sector,” after they pushed for a more aggressive phase-out of Biden-era green energy credits. 

Norman said former President Joe Biden’s 2021 Inflation Reduction Act will be “dealt with” through “a lot of things,” but did not give specifics. 

Burchett said learning how the phase-outs will be “vigorously enforced” was “huge.” 

“They’re going to enforce the law,” Burchett said about the White House. 

Much of the credit for swaying the holdouts goes to Trump and his administration. Many Republicans, including those from the Freedom Caucus and the Main Street Caucus, traveled to the White House on Wednesday to meet with the president.

Rep. Andrew Clyde (R-GA), who was initially against the rule but eventually flipped, said he spoke with the president at the White House about repealing the National Firearms Act’s registration for suppressors and short-barreled firearms.

He said he voted for final passage because “I support fulfilling President Trump’s America First agenda and the promises we made to the country.”

Rep. Dusty Johnson (R-SD), co-chairman of the centrist Main Street Caucus, told reporters it was a “productive meeting,” and he pushed many members to a “yes” vote. The South Dakota Republicans said some of his holdouts were due to a lack of understanding and not outright opposition to the bill.

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Office of Management and Budget Director Russ Vought arrived on Capitol Hill to meet with holdouts. Johnson said the administration was instrumental in pushing it over the finish line on Wednesday evening.

“We had the president himself, we had the vice president, we had attorneys and agencies answering questions,” Johnson told reporters. “I mean, it was very detailed and I think very productive in the end.”