By Jacob Bogage and Humeyra Pamuk
WASHINGTON, June 29 (Reuters) – U.S. President Donald Trump cast doubt on whether he would sign a bipartisan housing affordability bill, calling it “a big yawn” as he pressed Congress, including fellow Republicans resisting his demands, to first pass separate and contentious voting requirements.
Speaking in the Oval Office on Monday, Trump said he had yet to decide whether to sign the 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act, which aims to boost housing supply through faster environmental reviews, new grants, and looser rules for prefabricated housing, but he stopped short of threatening a veto.
Trump last week abruptly canceled a signing ceremony for the housing bill to pressure Republicans into passing the SAVE America Act, which would require proof of citizenship to register to vote and create a national voter database using state registration records. Trump has long falsely claimed widespread fraud in U.S. elections.
CONFLICTING DEMANDS ON THE TRUMP WHITE HOUSE
His comments highlight a growing tension between White House attempts to overhaul U.S. elections and address concerns over consumer affordability, both core parts of Trump’s agenda and his Republican Party’s campaign for November midterm elections.
Trump faced difficulty connecting with voters on cost-of-living issues, opinion polls showed, even before the four-month-old war on Iran. Iran closed the Strait of Hormuz, a vital waterway for energy shipments, driving up fuel and industrial input prices.
“I think it’s so unimportant compared to the Save America Act,” Trump said of the housing measure. “To me, compared to the Save America Act, just about everything is a big yawn.”
House Speaker Mike Johnson, a Louisiana Republican, said on Sunday that he would transmit the bill to the White House on Monday. From then, Trump has 10 days, excluding Sundays, to sign the bill or send it back to Congress. After that point, without his signature, it will become law.
The Consumer Price Index, one of the standard measures of inflation, jumped to 4.2% in May, its highest mark since April 2023, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Trump returned to office after four years in January 2025.
A CHALLENGING LANDSCAPE FOR REPUBLICANS
Some of the president’s recent comments about inflation risk making the election landscape more difficult for Republicans.
Trump has repeatedly called affordability “a hoax,” said “I don’t think about Americans’ financial situation” when making decisions about the Iran war, and recently remarked “I love the inflation” when asked about rising consumer prices.
Trump’s latest remarks also highlight a divide between the White House and Senate Republican Leader John Thune of South Dakota. Trump has for months urged Thune to scrap the 60-vote filibuster threshold that most pieces of legislation must surpass to advance in the Senate or dismiss the chamber’s parliamentarian. Thune has declined, and neither move has broad support among Republican lawmakers, who control the Senate.
(Reporting by Jacob Bogage and Humeyra Pamuk; Editing by Colleen Jenkins and Howard Goller)
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