Tech billionaire Elon Musk took the stage at this year’s Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) with a late-scheduled appearance that saw him wield a chainsaw and discuss a range of topics.
The annual conference, which traditionally has brought together difference factions of the Republican Party, has become increasingly aligned with President Trump’s MAGA wing.
Vice President Vance kicked off Thursday’s conference. Other speakers slated to appear include former Arizona Senate candidate Kari Lake, former White House chief strategist Steve Bannon and conservative commentator Ben Shapiro.
In the Senate, meanwhile, the vote-a-rama on its budget resolution — what is expected to be an overnight marathon voting session — has begun.
Also on Thursday, Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) announced he will not seek reelection in 2026, bringing an end to the longest-serving Senate leader’s political career.
“Seven times, my fellow Kentuckians have sent me to the Senate,” McConnell said.
“Every day in between I’ve been humbled by the trust they’ve placed in me to do their business here. Representing our commonwealth has been the honor of a lifetime. I will not seek this honor an eighth time. My current term in the Senate will be my last.”
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Senate adopts budget resolution after marathon overnight vote-a-rama
The Senate on Friday adopted a budget resolution intended to serve as a blueprint to deliver the first part of President Trump’s agenda.
Senators voted 52-48 along party lines on the resolution after a marathon overnight voting session. Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) voted against the measure.
The so-called vote-a-rama lasted about 10 hours, as Democrats sought to dial up the heat on Republicans with dozens of amendments needling the party on taxes and Medicaid.
Senate in homestretch of amendment votes
The Senate is seemingly in the homestretch of the vote-a-rama.
After voice voting a number of amendments, only two more remain before the final vote to adopt the budget resolution.
Senate has its first voice vote of the night
The Senate defeated an amendment offered by Sen. Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.) by voice vote.
The amendment aimed to set up a deficit-neutral reserve “relating to funding for grants awarded by the Office of Violence Against Women.”
Due to the nature of the vote, there is no recorded tally of the vote.
Senate rejects Rand Paul amendment in bipartisan vote
Senate Republicans and Democrats voted overwhelmingly to reject an amendment offered by GOP Sen. Rand Paul (Ky.), a staunch conservative, aimed at cutting more than a trillion dollars in federal spending.
“The budget bill before us instructs the Senate to find $342 billion in new spending,” Paul said. “The budget bill, as written, is a spending bill. My amendment would add language to cut spending.”
“The cuts would total $1.5 trillion,” he said, adding, “The deficit will exceed $2 trillion. It is a fiscal imperative that Congress begin to cut spending.”
Almost half of Republicans joined all Democrats in opposing the proposal, with 24 votes from the GOP side in favor of the pitch.
The move comes as GOP leaders have been clashing in both chambers in their strategies to advance key parts of President Trump’s agenda.
On the House side, Republicans are a pressing on with a plan that boosts dollars for border and defense, but also paves the way for potentially trillions of dollars in tax cuts and spending cuts. In the Senate, however, Republicans seek to prioritize border and defense funding in a slimmer package first, with plans to tackle tax cuts later in the year.
Collins, Hawley break with Republicans on Schumer’s Medicaid vote
Sens. Susan Collins (R-Maine) and Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) broke with Republicans in an effort to allow a vote on an amendment from Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer (N.Y.) seeking to “prevent tax cuts for the wealthy if a single dollar of Medicaid funding is cut.”
However, the GOP-led effort blocking the vote was ultimately successful after 51 Republicans voted against allowing consideration. The vote happened shortly after Republicans voted to pass their own amendment that the party said was aimed at strengthening Medicaid.
Collins and Hawley also backed an amendment by Sen. Jon Ossoff (D-Ga.) that aimed to set up a deficit neutral reserve fund related to “protecting access to maternal and pediatric health care through Medicaid.”
Collins also was the sole Republican to join Democrats in an effort to allow consideration of the first two amendments put forth by Democrats during the voting marathon that sought to prevent tax cuts for the wealthy.
Senate votes on first GOP amendment of the night
Senators voted on the first amendment offered by Republicans of the night, considering a proposal from Sen. Dan Sullivan (R-Alaska) that he said is aimed at strengthening Medicaid and Medicare.
The vote comes as Democrats have already detailed plans for healthcare votes that could be politically tough for some vulnerable Republicans.
“People rely on Medicare and Medicaid. Alaskans rely on Medicare and Medicaid, and we are here to strongly support them,” Sullivan said. “So we should all agree that we want to weed out waste, fraud, abuse in our healthcare system, including in Medicare and Medicaid, and we must maintain our safety net programs.”
The vote passed 51-49 as Democrats came out against the proposal, which calls for a deficit neutral reserve fund “relating to protecting Medicare and Medicaid.”
“This amendment claims to protect Medicare and Medicaid, but it does neither. In particular, the Medicaid language seeks to talk about a group called the most vulnerable. Obviously, we care about them, but the language of the soul of an amendment would leave millions behind, and we don’t want to go there,” Sen. Ron Wyden (R-Ore.) argued.
“The language in this amendment is code for kicking Americans with Medicaid coverage off their health insurance if they’re not sick enough, not poor enough, or not disabled enough.”
Sens. Mike Lee (R-Utah) and John Curtis (R-Utah) joined Democrats in opposing the amendment.
Democratic amendments rejected – but manage to notch a little GOP support
The Senate has cleared eight votes so far, but none of the amendments offered by Democrats have been adopted.
It’s still an open question as to how long until the voting marathon will wrap.
Among the amendments considered so far is one offered by Sen. Mike Bennet (D-Colo.) to set up a deficit neutral reserve fund to reinstate fired employees at the Forest Service, the National Park Service, the United States Fish and Wildlife Service and the Bureau of Land Management.
Another offered by Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.) would set up another deficit neutral reserve fund related to the “impacts of hedge fund ownership of single-family homes and rent prices.” Another offered by Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.) would set up a fund related to the “impacts of hedge fund ownership of single-family homes and rent prices.”
Republicans overwhelmingly rejected both amendments, but they still notched some GOP support.
Sen. Lisa Murkowksi (R-Ala.) broke with Republicans to back Bennett’s proposal, which comes after she previously sounded alarm over mass firings ordered under the Trump administration.
Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) was the sole GOP member to cross the aisle in supporting the latter proposed by Merkley.
“I don’t want private equity buying up family housing. It’s terrible,” Hawley told The Hill. “We can price families out of the market. I think we ought to put a stop to it. So I’m fine for anything that will help advance that.
5 takeaways from Musk’s CPAC talk
Elon Musk served as one of the main attractions at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) on Thursday evening with a late-scheduled appearance that saw him wield a chainsaw and discuss a range of topics.
Musk’s appearance began with a bang when Argentine President Javier Milei came out to offer the Tesla CEO the chainsaw, which Musk brandished on stage. His subsequent interview with Newsmax’s Rob Schmitt touched on everything from the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) to the Russia-Ukraine conflict.
The chainsaw move, and the talk, highlighted Musk’s efforts with DOGE, which seeks to slash government spending and bureaucracy. Like Milei, who has pledged to make sweeping cuts to Argentina’s government and has reportedly served as an inspiration for DOGE, Musk has embraced Trump’s vision to shake up the status quo in Washington.
But Musk’s appearance at CPAC also underscored the Tesla CEO’s growing influence and power within the GOP.
Trump says he’s going to Fort Knox to inspect gold reserves
President Trump said Thursday he intends to make a trip to Fort Knox in Kentucky to inspect the nation’s gold reserves amid a push from Elon Musk and some Republicans to conduct a review the facility.
“I’m actually going on this one. All my life I’ve heard about Fort Knox. That’s where the gold is kept,” Trump told Republican governors at a reception in Washington.
“We’re getting a little bit shaky. We’re getting the yips on this stuff. Like I want to find out,” Trump said. “We’re going to open up the doors. I’m going to see if we have gold there. Did anybody steal the gold in Fort Knox?”
Hawley says he filed Medicaid amendment
GOP Sen. Josh Hawley (Mo.) says he’s filed a few amendments for tonight’s vote-a-rama, including one aimed at preventing Medicaid cuts and “several Ukraine amendments.”
He said he doesn’t know if any will come up for a vote yet.
Because the budget resolution is a GOP bill, the bulk of the amendments tonight are expected to come from Democrats, who are aiming to put Republicans in a tough spot.
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) said in his opening remarks that he would also offer an amendment to prevent people from being kicked off Medicaid “to pay for” what he called “billionaire tax breaks.”
Pressed if he’d vote for the Democratic amendment on Medicaid, Hawley said, “Pretty tempting … when you do a vote-a-rama, you never know.”
First amendment of the night fails
The first amendment offered by Senate Minority Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) failed in a 47-52 vote.
The Senate will vote on the second amendment of the night, one offered by Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) aimed at stopping tax cuts for the wealthy if food prices go up.
Democrats sound alarm over ‘indiscriminate’ Pentagon cuts
Democrats across the Capitol were outraged Thursday at news that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has ordered senior Pentagon and military leaders to plan 8 percent cuts from the defense budget in each of the next five years.
Republicans, who traditionally support robust defense spending, took the plans in stride, despite GOP lawmakers wanting to add $100 billion to the annual defense spending bill. Any cuts that impact districts where ships or arms are produced would likely put the Pentagon on a collision course with Congress.
The cuts, ordered in a Tuesday memo, would seek to shave off $50 billion from Defense Department coffers in the next fiscal year in a dramatic realignment of defense spending to fund President Trump’s priorities, including an Iron Dome-like missile defense system for the U.S. and beefed up border security.
Democrats say the effort is a sham that will not only fail to save taxpayers money, but also undermine America’s defense capabilities in an increasingly hostile world.
“These types of hasty, indiscriminate budget cuts would betray our military forces and their families and make America less safe,” Senate Armed Services Committee ranking member Jack Reed (D-R.I.) said in a statement.
The vote-a-rama is on
The vote-a-rama is officially underway.
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) said the night would be about how “Republicans want to help billionaires win, American families lose, and rule and the rule of law firm to the ground.”
“We’re going to be here all night,” he added. “We have lots of amendments that are in these three categories. It will be a long night, but it’s a debate the American people need to see, deserve to see, and that’s why we’re here.”
Schumer offered up the night’s first amendment, aimed at preventing a tax cut included in the eventual bill from applying to taxpayers who earn over $1 million.
CPAC crowd cheers at mention of DOGE
The crowd let out cheers when an interviewer on stage with Elon Musk mentioned “DOGE,” otherwise known as the advisory group Department of Government Efficiency.
Members in the audience could seen standing up and taking photos and videos of Musk. The audience is a bit more energized than earlier.
Argentine President Javier Milei joins Musk on stage
Argentine President Javier Milei briefly joined Elon Musk on stage, carrying his signature chainsaw at CPAC.
Milei handed the chainsaw to Musk, who held it up as the crowd cheered.
Musk has said Milei was an inspiration behind Trump’s so-called Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), which has worked to slash government spending and waste.
Musk takes the stage at CPAC
Tech billionaire Elon Musk has arrived on stage at CPAC and is expected to speak shortly.
Some CPAC attendees push for Trump to serve a third term
Here at CPAC, a new push: Trump Third Term Project.
Shane Trejo of Republicans for National Renewal said that the new initiative is trying to get more support for Rep. Andy Ogles’s (R-Tenn) constitutional amendment to allow President Trump to seek a third term.
What is a vote-a-rama, the Senate GOP’s next hurdle on Trump’s agenda
The Senate is gearing up for an overnight marathon voting session as Republicans look to clear a key hurdle, known as a “vote-a-rama,” on the path to delivering President Trump a major legislative win in his first year back in office.
The vote-a-rama refers to a blitz of successive votes on amendments to the budget resolution, which top Republicans have indicated will begin on Thursday and could last sometime into the wee hours of Friday morning.
Judge rules Trump administration can move ahead with mass government layoffs
A federal judge Thursday refused a group of government employee unions’ request to block the Trump administration from moving ahead with plans to dramatically reduce the federal workforce.
U.S. District Judge Christopher Cooper ruled that federal law mandates the unions bring their challenge before the Federal Labor Relations Authority (FLRA), which adjudicates labor relations within the federal bureaucracy, rather than a federal district court.
Argentinian president takes photos at CPAC
Argentina’s president Javier Milei was spotted at CPAC taking photos with attendees.
Speaker Johnson discourages DOGE stimulus checks idea
Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) threw cold water on the idea of using savings from the Trump administration’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) government-slashing activities to send checks to Americans.
That marks a break from President Trump and tech billionaire and Trump adviser Elon Musk, who have floated the idea in recent days.
Kari Lake spotted at CPAC
Former Arizona gubernatorial candidate Kari Lake is at CPAC in Maryland Thursday.
She is serving as the head of Voice of America.
Rick Scott jabs at McConnell for opposing Trump’s Cabinet picks
Sens. Rick Scott (R-Fla.) at CPAC jabbed at Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) for opposing some of Trump’s Cabinet picks.
The president “deserves our thanks and respect,” Scott told the convention crowd. “But what’s he get instead? He gets lies and obstruction from the Democrats, the mainstream media and even some establishment Washington Republicans desperately clinging to relevance.”
McConnell “supports Merrick Garland’s nomination for attorney general,” Scott said, referencing one of former President Biden’s picks. “He’s already voted against three of President Trump’s cabinet nominees.”
McConnell, who announced on Thursday that he won’t seek reelection after decades in the upper chamber, broke with his party to oppose a trio of Trump’s controversial Cabinet nominees.
He voted against Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard, and Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., though all have since been confirmed.
Elon Musk gives remarks to CPAC
Tech billionaire Elon Musk, a key ally of President Trump, is set to address the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) on Thursday afternoon in National Harbor, Md.
He is expected to speak at 4:15 p.m. local time.
CPAC crowd boos Ukraine aid
The crowd at CPAC booed the idea of another Ukraine aid package.
Newsmax host Rob Finnerty asked Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) about the possibility of another aid package for Ukraine if negotiations with Russia on ending the conflict drag on for months.
The crowd responded with boos.
“There’s no appetite for that,” Johnson said. “We have to bring it to an end.”
Johnson also dinged the Ukrainian president for criticism of the Trump administration negotiating with Russia, without Ukraine, on an end to the war.
“I think Zelensky complaining that he wasn’t invited to the first minute from Saudi Arabia and Russia is misplaced,” Johnson said, adding that Trump is trying to “level set” and comparing the separation to separate meetings for separate parties in a legal mediation.
Johnson says House GOP will ‘defy’ history and grow majority
House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) vowed that House Republicans would defy history by growing their majority despite historical trends, which suggest the party in power usually loses seats during midterm cycles.
“We’re going to defy history and we’re going to grow the House majority in two years and not lose the majority. I think everybody recognizes President Trump needs four years and not two and if they took the majority back they would try to impeach him, they would open the border wide, create all sorts of chaos,” he said while at CPAC on Thursday.
Barr spox attacks Cameron after KY Senate announcement
A spokesman for Rep. Andy Barr (R-Ky.) took a shot at Kentucky Attorney General Daniel Cameron (R) after the latter announced he was running for Sen. Mitch McConnell’s (R-Ky.) seat.
“When President Trump and Andy Barr teamed up in his 2018 election, they won Kentucky’s toughest Congressional race against Amy McGrath and the Trump resistance. When President Trump endorsed Daniel Cameron for Governor, Daniel embarrassed the President and our party by losing in a state that President Trump won by over 30 points—including losing Andy Barr’s district by 19 points,” Barr spokesman Tyler Staker said in a statement.
“We need proven winners, not folks who can’t win even with the support of the greatest President we’ve ever seen,” he added.
Cameron ran for Kentucky governor in 2023 against Gov. Andy Beshear (D), losing to the Democrat by 5 points.
Barr has said he’s “considering running” for McConnell’s seat, saying “Kentucky deserves a Senator who will fight for President Trump and the America First Agenda.”
Comer won’t run for McConnell’s Kentucky Senate seat in 2026
Rep. James Comer (R-Ky.) said he won’t run for Sen. Mitch McConnell’s open Senate seat in 2026 after the former House Minority Leader announced he would not seek another term.
“I’ve made it very clear I’m not running for the Senate,” Comer told The Hill on Thursday. “Maybe governor on down the road, but … not Senate.”
Senate confirms Kash Patel to lead FBI
The Senate on Thursday confirmed Kash Patel to serve as the head of the FBI, approving a pick with a string of controversial statements who has been accused by Democrats of directing a purge of bureau employees.
Patel was confirmed in a 51-49 vote. Two Republicans, Sens. Susan Collins (Main) and Lisa Murkowski (Alaska), voted against confirmation.
Patel has said he would “shut down” FBI headquarters on his first day in office and turn it into a “museum to the deep state.”
MAGA, glitzy attire on display at CPAC
While most attendees at CPAC are wearing suits and dresses, some people have used the event as an opportunity to wear attire with President Trump’s “Make America Great Again” slogan, while others have opted for louder approach of wearing sequins — and even feathers.
