Republicans Seek Votes for Trump Policy Bill as Senate Begins Debate

Politics|G.O.P. Toils to Find Votes as Senate Debates Policy Bill

The Senate opened debate on Sunday on the embattled Republican tax cuts and domestic policy bill, as G.O.P. leaders toiled to build enough support in their own ranks to push it through before a Fourth of July deadline set by President Trump.

The bitter floor fight began in earnest after Senate clerks devoted almost 16 consecutive hours to reading aloud the 940-page bill. Democrats insisted on the reading as a protest and to delay the final showdown, stalling a vote on passage to Monday at the earliest. Late Sunday night, Republicans, still laboring to marshal backing for the measure, delayed a marathon series of votes on amendments to it, which had been expected to begin overnight, until Monday morning.

Still, Republicans took to the floor to hail the legislation, which extends a broad array of tax cuts enacted in 2017 during the first Trump administration and boosts spending on the military and border security, while making steep cuts to Medicaid and federal nutrition assistance to pay for them.

“It’s a big, beautiful bill if you believe in cutting people’s taxes, securing the border, having a strong military and controlling government spending,” Senator Lindsey Graham, Republican of South Carolina and chairman of the Budget Committee, said, using the name bestowed upon the legislation by Mr. Trump.

Democrats assailed the bill, which also would increase the federal debt limit by $5 trillion, noting that it was projected to significantly increase the deficit and deny essential safety net programs to millions of Americans in order to provide tax benefits mainly to the wealthiest.

“This is a recipe for disaster,” said Senator Gary Peters, Democrat of Michigan, calling the legislation reckless and unconscionable.