Trump backtracks from 'one big, beautiful bill' to fund his agenda

After nearly derailing a spending bill and forcing a government shutdown last month, President-elect Donald Trump continues to shake up legislative business on Capitol Hill, offering shifting views in recent days on how Republicans should fund his major policy initiatives.

The negotiated package is expected to include several of Trump’s top priorities, which include extending the tax cuts passed during his first term and addressing his immigration reforms, including more funding for Border Patrol and ICE. Trump has also pushed Congress to increase or eliminate the debt limit, though details of any plan remain unclear.

With control of both Congress and the White House, Republicans could implement Trump's legislative agenda without Democratic support using a procedural tool called reconciliation, which requires only a simple majority to pass spending bills instead of a 60-vote threshold.

But after advocating on Sunday for "one big, beautiful bill" to pay for his agenda, Trump on Monday acknowledged opposition from some Republicans to his ambitious plan and said he would consider alternatives.

Trump is expected to meet with Senate Republicans during their closed-door lunch on Wednesday, ABC News has learned from multiple sources, as the president-elect continues to engage with House and Senate leadership over how to most effectively advance his agenda after he takes office.

House Speaker Mike Johnson told House Republicans on Saturday during a closed-door retreat to map out their legislative agenda that Trump wants Congress to pass one sweeping bill.

On Sunday morning, the speaker told Fox Business, “At the end of the day, President Trump is going to prefer, as he likes to say, 'one big, beautiful bill.' And there's a lot of merit to that, because we can put it all together, one big up-or-down vote, which can save the country, quite literally, because there are so many elements to it.”

Trump late Sunday first advocated for Congress to pass one sweeping bill through reconciliation rather than in multiple bills.

"Members of Congress are getting to work on one powerful Bill that will bring our Country back, and make it greater than ever before," Trump posted on Truth Social, alluding to the reconciliation package.

Trump advocated for "one, beautiful bill," during an appearance on the "Hugh Hewitt Show" on Monday morning, but later said he could be willing to break the legislative package into two.

"I would prefer one, but I will do whatever needs to be done to get it passed," Trump told Hewitt.

Trump's openness to change reflects the reality that a one-bill proposal is a break from the two-package deal Senate Majority Leader John Thune and other Republicans have laid out.

"We have a lot of respect for Senator Thune, as you know, he may have a little bit of a different view of it," Trump told Hewitt. "I heard other senators yesterday, including Lindsey [Graham], talking about it. They prefer it the other way. So I'm open. I'm open to either way, as long as we get something passed as quickly as possible."

Thune brushed off questions about the differing strategies while heading into the Senate chamber on Monday.

“We are working through all that. The process issues to me are a lot less important than the result,” he said.

Taking the reconciliation path will be a major challenge to pass, given the razor-thin GOP majority in the House. Members of the House Freedom Caucus, a group of conservative Republican members that has endorsed a two-step plan, could stand in the way.

“There are a group of us who support breaking it up into two pieces," Freedom Caucus Chairman Andy Harris said on Saturday in a Fox News interview. "The first piece, a very small border piece where we give the president the money that he needs to secure our southern border and start deporting illegal, criminal aliens.”

Trump last month nearly caused the government to shutdown when he demanded at the 11th hour that a bipartisan temporary funding bill include provisions to suspend the debt ceiling. That bill failed after Democrats and conservative Republicans voted against it. The House later passed a bill that was closer to the original measure without addressing the debt ceiling.

Johnson has shown urgency to get legislation passed despite Trump's shifting position as the speaker and president-elect continue to work together to deliver on Trump’s ambitious promises during his first 100 days in office.

Johnson said the goal is to pass a reconciliation package by the first week of April so Trump could sign it into law by the end of April. He added, “In a worst-case scenario, Memorial Day" for getting it to Trump’s desk.

Johnson said Monday he had talked to Trump about the evolving plan late Sunday and again Monday morning.

“So, some people like the one bill strategy, some people like the two-bill strategy. We will work that out," Johnson said as he entered the Capitol. "I'm in dialogue this morning with Senator Thune, and the two houses will get together and we'll get it done.”

ABC News' Katherine Faulders, Jay Scott and Allison Pecorin contributed to this report.