President Donald Trump is weighing whether Senate Republicans should remove the chamber’s parliamentarian after one of his key funding requests was blocked during negotiations over a major immigration package, according to Fox News.
Trump took aim Wednesday at Senate Parliamentarian Elizabeth MacDonough after she ruled that a proposed $1 billion funding provision tied to security enhancements for the White House ballroom project could not move through the Senate’s budget reconciliation process.
Republicans are attempting to advance a $72 billion immigration enforcement package through reconciliation, a process that allows certain budget-related measures to pass with a simple majority vote rather than the Senate’s typical 60-vote threshold.
Over the weekend, MacDonough stripped the ballroom-related funding from the package. According to Fox News, approximately $600 million of the funding was intended for the Secret Service, while another $220 million would have gone toward security measures associated with the East Wing modernization effort.
Trump responded forcefully in a Truth Social post, criticizing MacDonough and questioning why Republicans have retained her in the role.
“Over the years, she has been brutal to Republicans, but not so to the Dumocrats — So why has she not been replaced?” Trump wrote. “There are many fair people who would be qualified for that vital job.”
Fox News reported that Trump also privately pressed Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) earlier this week about removing MacDonough from the position.
Thune, however, signaled little interest in taking such a step.
“There are always people that are unhappy with some decisions that come down, and it’s kind of the nature of the beast,” Thune said. “We will work through the process and do our best to get the things that we want on the floor later this week.”
Other Republican senators also pushed back on the idea.
Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) argued that MacDonough has ruled against both parties during reconciliation fights, noting that Democrats during former President Joe Biden’s administration also failed to get everything they wanted through the process.
Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.) dismissed calls for her removal with characteristic bluntness.
“For what?” Kennedy said, according to Fox News. “Does she have a DWI or something?”
The debate also revived a broader Republican frustration with Senate rules and the 60-vote filibuster threshold.
Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wis.) told Fox News that the real issue is the Senate’s procedural structure itself, arguing that Republicans resorted to reconciliation because they lacked enough Democratic support to pass the Department of Homeland Security funding package through normal channels.
“We’re as likely to end the filibuster as we are to get rid of the parliamentarian,” Johnson said, “so you might as well put pressure on Republicans to address the root cause.”
MacDonough has previously faced criticism from Republicans over reconciliation rulings. Last year, some GOP lawmakers similarly called for her removal after provisions involving Medicaid spending cuts were ruled out of order. Supporters of replacing her have pointed to a historical precedent: then-Senate Majority Leader Trent Lott removed the Senate parliamentarian during reconciliation negotiations in 2001, according to Fox News.
