{"id":2619175,"date":"2026-06-25T15:38:02","date_gmt":"2026-06-25T19:38:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/senate-gop-tries-to-mend-fences-with-trump-after-fiery-lunch\/"},"modified":"2026-06-25T15:39:20","modified_gmt":"2026-06-25T19:39:20","slug":"senate-gop-tries-to-mend-fences-with-trump-after-fiery-lunch","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/senate-gop-tries-to-mend-fences-with-trump-after-fiery-lunch\/","title":{"rendered":"Senate GOP tries to mend fences with Trump after fiery lunch"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"float:left\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">22<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fsenate-gop-tries-to-mend-fences-with-trump-after-fiery-lunch%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2619175&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>Senate Republicans are attempting to move past recent tensions stemming from a confrontational lunch with President Donald Trump, which highlighted ongoing disagreements. In a symbolic move, they revisited their stance on the Iran war, voting again against a measure aimed at limiting Trump&#8217;s war powers, despite passing a <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3YuVZYV\" >similar resolution days earlier<\/a>. the repeated votes reflect internal GOP divisions and a desire to appear supportive of Trump&#8217;s negotiations with iran, with several senators, including top party leaders, engaging in discussions with Trump afterward. Trump expressed satisfaction with the tone of these interactions via social media and criticized some senators who diverged from his position, notably Senator Bill Cassidy. The episode underscores broader GOP frustrations over legislative gridlock, especially on issues like a bipartisan housing bill, a key spy program, and contentious bills such as the SAVE America Act. While trump and Senate Republicans aim to maintain unity, disagreements remain over policy priorities and strategic moves, with some GOP members supporting delaying certain actions or veto threats to better negotiate their legislative agenda.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<article class=\"fn-body\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Senate Republicans are trying to turn the page on a heated lunch with President <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/donald-trump\/\">Donald Trump<\/a> that brought weeks of tensions to a <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/senate\/4597401\/how-thune-overcame-trump-roadblock-fund-ice\/\">new high-water mark<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In a symbolic gesture, Senate Republicans took another vote on the Iran war Wednesday night, flipping two senators Trump <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/senate\/4623552\/inside-trump-explosive-meeting-senate-republicans\/\">singled out at the lunch<\/a> for siding with Democrats. The move does not erase a vote senators <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/senate\/4621571\/senate-rebukes-trump-on-iran-war-with-symbolic-resolution\/\">took a couple of days earlier<\/a> that passed. That legislation passed both the House and Senate with a handful of GOP defections.<\/p>\n<section class=\"explore-more-section\" id=\"wex-recommended-widget\">\n<div class=\"magazine-container single\">\n<h1 class=\"magazine-title mt-2\">Recommended Stories<\/h1>\n<p>             <i class=\"fa-solid fa-play icon\"><\/i>         <\/div>\n<div class=\"explore-grid\">\n<div class=\"explore-card\">                         <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/senate\/4624479\/luna-house-floor-closed-senate-returns-19-day-recess\/?itm_source=parsely-api\">                             <\/p>\n<div class=\"explore-thumb-wrap\">                                                                                                                                  <\/div>\n<h3>Anna Paulina Luna promises to keep House floor closed until Senate returns from 19-day recess<\/h3>\n<p>                         <\/a>                     <\/div>\n<div class=\"explore-card\">                         <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/4624383\/gop-senators-switch-votes-to-reject-measure-curbing-trumps-war-powers\/?itm_source=parsely-api\">                             <\/p>\n<div class=\"explore-thumb-wrap\">                                                                                                                                  <\/div>\n<h3>GOP senators switch votes to reject measure curbing Trump\u2019s war powers<\/h3>\n<p>                         <\/a>                     <\/div>\n<div class=\"explore-card\">                         <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/house\/4623366\/congress-time-capsule-america-250\/?itm_source=parsely-api\">                             <\/p>\n<div class=\"explore-thumb-wrap\">                                                                                                                                  <\/div>\n<h3>Congress seals 250-year time capsule to mark America\u2019s semiquincentennial<\/h3>\n<p>                         <\/a>                     <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/section>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">But it did allow Republicans to say they were giving the president space to negotiate a peace deal, and they went to great pains to be sure he noticed.<\/p>\n<div class=\"wex-inarticle-ad wex-inarticle-ad-art-dsk-inart-1\">\n<div class=\"wex-ad-wrap\" style=\"min-height:5px;\"><span class=\"wex-ad-label\" style=\"display:none;\">Advertisement<\/span><\/p>\n<div id=\"div-gpt-ad-3182201-15\" data-wex-ad=\"art-dsk-inart-1\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"article-paywall\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The Senate\u2019s top two Republicans, John Thune (R-SD) and John Barrasso (R-WY), called the president after the vote, joined by Sens. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) and Bernie Moreno (R-OH).<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Trump then posted a <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/DISivak\/status\/2069984852875653609?s=20\">surprised \u201cWow!\u201d<\/a> on Truth Social to express satisfaction with the about-face.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Earlier in the day, Trump got into a yelling match with Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-LA), one of the senators <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/4624383\/gop-senators-switch-votes-to-reject-measure-curbing-trumps-war-powers\/?itm_source=parsely-api\">who ultimately changed his vote<\/a>, and spent much of the lunch fuming over his sense that Republicans were undermining his negotiations with Iran.<\/p>\n<div class=\"wex-inarticle-ad wex-inarticle-ad-art-dsk-inart-2\">\n<div class=\"wex-ad-wrap\" style=\"min-height:5px;\"><span class=\"wex-ad-label\" style=\"display:none;\">Advertisement<\/span><\/p>\n<div id=\"div-gpt-ad-3182201-16\" data-wex-ad=\"art-dsk-inart-2\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/senate\/4623552\/inside-trump-explosive-meeting-senate-republicans\/\"><strong>INSIDE TRUMP\u2019S EXPLOSIVE MEETING WITH SENATE REPUBLICANS<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The vent session was part of a larger rift with congressional Republicans over his second-term priorities. On top of Iran, Trump has been lashing out over the Senate\u2019s inaction on the <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/save-america-act\/\" type=\"post_tag\" id=\"22939\">SAVE America Act<\/a>, a sweeping election bill that has stalled out due to the filibuster.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The appointment of Bill Pulte, a Trump loyalist, as acting intelligence chief has also become a stumbling block, and Republicans want him out of the job and replaced by his expected successor, Jay Clayton.<\/p>\n<div class=\"wex-inarticle-ad wex-inarticle-ad-art-dsk-inart-3\">\n<div class=\"wex-ad-wrap\" style=\"min-height:5px;\"><span class=\"wex-ad-label\" style=\"display:none;\">Advertisement<\/span><\/p>\n<div id=\"div-gpt-ad-3182201-17\" data-wex-ad=\"art-dsk-inart-3\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">For now, a bipartisan housing bill and the renewal of a key spy program have become casualties of those standoffs, and their fate was in limbo as Senate Republicans left for the July 4 recess.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The Iran war vote, the final one taken as senators departed Washington, amounts to a ramp-down in those tensions and was accompanied by three conversations in total Wednesday between Trump and Thune, two of them over the phone and one in person after the lunch.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">A source familiar with the conversations described them as \u201cpositive,\u201d and it appeared the White House, too, wanted to smooth things over afterward.<\/p>\n<div class=\"wex-inarticle-ad wex-inarticle-ad-art-dsk-inart-4\">\n<div class=\"wex-ad-wrap\" style=\"min-height:5px;\"><span class=\"wex-ad-label\" style=\"display:none;\">Advertisement<\/span><\/p>\n<div id=\"div-gpt-ad-3182201-25\" data-wex-ad=\"art-dsk-inart-4\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Barrasso\u2019s whip operation on the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/iran-conflict-gives-lawmakers-whiplash-ahead-of-war-powers-vote\/\" title=\"... conflict gives lawmakers whiplash ahead of ... ...\">war powers vote<\/a> was aided by Vice President JD Vance, the top peace negotiator for Iran. Vance and special envoy Steve Witkoff hosted Cassidy in the White House Situation Room for a briefing on Iran and held a dinner with GOP senators that evening. Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) flipped his vote to \u201cpresent\u201d afterward, while Cassidy joined Republicans in voting \u201cno.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Trump, for his part, did not let the blow-up add to speculation that his relationship with Thune is fraying, but he did take a parting shot at Cassidy and others who have broken with him on the Senate floor.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Cassidy, in particular, has drawn the president\u2019s ire for his 2021 impeachment vote, and Trump ran a successful primary challenge against him over it.<\/p>\n<div class=\"wex-inarticle-ad wex-inarticle-ad-art-dsk-inart-5\">\n<div class=\"wex-ad-wrap\" style=\"min-height:5px;\"><span class=\"wex-ad-label\" style=\"display:none;\">Advertisement<\/span><\/p>\n<div id=\"div-gpt-ad-3182201-26\" data-wex-ad=\"art-dsk-inart-5\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cWe like our leader,\u201d Trump said as he left the lunch. \u201cWe like everybody, really, in the room \u2014 I don\u2019t like a few people, but that\u2019s OK. I think you know who they are.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Thune told the <em>Washington Examiner<\/em> the meeting at the Capitol was \u201cimportant\u201d insofar as it allowed Trump to air out his grievances.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cIn that respect, it sort of accomplished the objective,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">But left unaddressed was <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/senate\/4622118\/senate-republicans-kumbaya-moment-trump-lunch\/\">Senate Republicans\u2019 own frustration<\/a> with how the rough patch has been derailing their legislative agenda. Cassidy got an Iran briefing, but so far, lawmakers writ large have not. And Trump, holding up the housing bill over the SAVE America Act, canceled a signing ceremony for its passage Wednesday.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">To some extent, Senate Republicans are <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/senate\/4620787\/thune-blunt-mike-lee-come-to-grips-save-america-act-math-voter-id-bill\/\">at odds over those same issues<\/a>. Sen. Mike Lee (R-UT), the lead sponsor of the SAVE America Act, called Trump\u2019s decision to delay the ceremony \u201cbold\u201d and voiced support for a presidential veto, if the president felt it was appropriate.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cIf he\u2019s got concerns with it, why not?\u201d Lee said.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In terms of the spy program, Senate Republicans can\u2019t get the votes to reauthorize it until Clayton, viewed as a more bipartisan choice for intelligence chief, is appointed, but there are, as of now, no plans to reschedule a confirmation hearing after Trump torpedoed the one <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/senate\/4611566\/trump-jay-clayton-hearing-fisa-canceling\/\">already on the books<\/a> last week.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cMy partner Tom Cotton is anxious, and I\u2019m anxious,\u201d said Sen. Mark Warner (D-VA), the top Democrat on the Senate Intelligence Committee. \u201cBut as we\u2019ve seen again today, the president\u2019s unpredictable.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/senate\/4622974\/thune-trump-veto-bipartisan-housing-bill\/\"><strong>THUNE URGES TRUMP NOT TO VETO BIPARTISAN HOUSING BILL: \u2018HOPE HE DOESN\u2019T GO THERE\u2019<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Over in the House, Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) has proposed that Republicans get on the same page by passing elements of the SAVE America Act, namely block grants for ID and other voting requirements, through reconciliation. He traveled to the White House on Thursday to pitch Trump on that <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/ron-johnson-open-to-trump-megabill-after-vance-meeting\/\" title=\"Ron Johnson open to Trump megabill after Vance meeting\">filibuster-skirting budget process<\/a>. <\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Still, Trump appears cool to that idea and told the <em>Washington Examiner<\/em> on Wednesday that he did not want to settle <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/white-house\/4620489\/trump-compromise-save-america-act-housing-bill\/\">for a \u201ccompromise\u201d bill<\/a>. Finding an off-ramp is increasingly becoming necessary for GOP leadership as House rebels threaten to shut down the floor in the absence of a path forward.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Senate GOP shifts stance after tense Trump lunch, votes on Iran<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2651,"featured_media":2619176,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/AP26175634809334-e1782414873951.jpg?w=696","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[33651],"tags":[3817,6203,5894,3740,3634],"class_list":["post-2619175","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-western-journal","tag-diplomacy","tag-gop","tag-politics","tag-senate","tag-trump"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/AP26175634809334-e1782414873951.jpg?w=696","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2619175","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2651"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2619175"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2619175\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2619179,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2619175\/revisions\/2619179"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2619176"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2619175"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2619175"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2619175"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}