Trump jawboned Thune to fire Senate's top rules referee over ballroom ruling: report

Source: Raw Story

May 18, 2026 9:01PM ET


President Donald Trump privately demanded that Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) fire Senate Parliamentarian Elizabeth MacDonough.

According to NOTUS, "President Donald Trump pressed Senate Majority Leader John Thune to fire the Senate parliamentarian after she ruled Republicans could not include funding for the president’s ballroom in a budget bill, two sources familiar with the request told NOTUS." However, Thune is adamantly refusing to get rid of MacDonough, who was first appointed as the Senate rules referee in 2012 and has often frustrated majorities in both parties.

The bill, which is primarily intended to fund Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Border Patrol through the entirety of Trump's remaining term, first included $1 billion in funding for strictly "security"-related features of the ballroom, which Trump for months has maintained would be financed solely through donor contributions.

Senate Republicans, who have previously expressed discomfort with the ballroom provision, are now moving to rewrite and scale it back in a way they hope will pass muster with the parliamentarian.

Read more: https://www.rawstory.com/trump-ballroom-2676911107/