Trump arrived on Capitol Hill to meet with Republicans in both chambers, starting first with House Republicans. Our reporters covering the House – Mike Lillis, Emily Brooks and Mychael Schnell – offered live updates as the meeting unfolded.
Inside the room: Republicans sang Trump “Happy Birthday”; Trump quipped that Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) should be nicer to House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.), whom she has threatened to try to oust; encouraged the use of tariffs and expressed caution to Republicans on how to speak about the issue of abortion.
Trump also met with Senate Republicans with whom he has had past friction, including Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), who endorsed Trump in March after presidential rival Nikki Haley dropped out. Sens. Mitt Romney (R-Utah), who didn’t initially plan on attending, and Bill Cassidy (R-La.) — both of whom who convicted Trump in at least one of the House impeachment trails — also were present, per our Senate reporters Alex Bolton and Al Weaver.
The Senate meeting came as Republicans have looked to shore up unity within their ranks, as Alex Bolton noted this morning, particularly after a contentious GOP presidential primary and amid enduring tensions between some Trump skeptics and the presumptive White House nominee.
For Republicans attending the meetings with Trump, it underscored the former president’s hold on the GOP even as Trump has failed to win over some lawmakers.
At the same time, the Capitol Hill appearance showed how Republicans are looking to get on the same page and map out their policy agenda on key issues.
Looming over the party, however, is what happens next after Trump’s conviction in his New York hush money case, where he was found guilty by a New York jury of falsifying business records. He has vowed to appeal that decision, but questions loom around whether the former president will be able to attend next month’s Republican National Convention and how it will impact his candidacy moving forward.
