The affordable housing bill passed with bipartisan support, a rarity in the deeply divided U.S. Congress.
Published June 24, 2026
President Donald Trump has canceled his planned signing of a bipartisan affordable housing bill in a bid to pressure Republican lawmakers to pass a package of long-stalled national voting restrictions that has exacerbated rifts within the party and demonstrated the limits of his power.
“Today’s housing press conference and signing is hereby suspended until the much-needed American Rescue Act is passed. I believe this is a national emergency,” President Trump said in a post on Truth Social on Wednesday, referring to federal legislation that would require voters to provide proof of U.S. citizenship and strict photo identification to vote in federal elections.
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President Trump said he would participate in a private luncheon with Senate Republicans on Wednesday afternoon to push for passage of his top legislative priority, a ballot measure called the SAVE America Act.
Some Republicans suggested this could be a largely symbolic gesture. If the president doesn’t sign it within 10 days, the bill could become law anyway, and lawmakers believe they have enough votes to overcome a presidential veto.
The affordable housing bill passed the U.S. House of Representatives by a vote of 358-32 on Tuesday after passing the Senate by a vote of 85-5 on Monday. It is unusual for such an important bill to be passed in a deeply divided Congress.
The move comes as inflation has risen significantly during President Trump’s second term and the high cost of living in the U.S. has been cited as a top concern by voters in polls.
Among the bill’s key provisions are waiving or expediting environmental reviews for residential construction projects and capping the number of built single-family homes that large Wall Street investors can own.
Housing industry groups estimate there is a shortage of millions of affordable homes in the United States.
The combination of high mortgage rates, rising home prices and supply chain issues of the past few years has created hardship for consumers.
For the first time since 2023, a majority of American consumers say they would rather buy a home than rent or live with family, according to a survey released Tuesday.
With less than five months left until November’s midterm elections, in which they are at risk of losing their majority, Senate Republicans are beginning to push back against President Trump on a number of fronts. He expressed outrage at President Trump’s decision to force him to abandon a $1.8 billion “anti-weaponization” fund and select an ally with no intelligence background to lead the U.S. intelligence community.
And on Tuesday, Republican Sens. Susan Collins, Lisa Murkowski, Rand Paul, and Bill Cassidy joined Democrats in passing legislation halting military action against Iran.
