Powerful storms in the Washington, D.C., area have disrupted the air travel of House lawmakers looking to make it back on Wednesday to vote on President Donald Trump’s One Big Beautiful Bill Act.
The storms are forcing lawmakers to find creative solutions to their air travel problems, with several driving hours and hundreds of miles to get a chance to vote.
At least five lawmakers are driving to the nation’s capital, including Reps. Chris DeLuzio (D-PA), Derek Tran (D-CA), Raja Krishnamoorthi (D-IL), Russell Fry (R-SC), and Nancy Mace (R-SC). Several others, like Rep. Eric Sorensen (D-IL) and Rep. Mark Pocan (D-WI), needed to drive before or after catching flights to get to D.C.
House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) acknowledged in a Fox News interview Tuesday night that members were having problems getting to Washington but that “hopefully we’re voting on this by tomorrow or Thursday at latest.”
I count at least five House lawmakers driving to DC because of storms impacting air travel:
– Reps. Chris DeLuzio (D-PA) & Derek Tran (D-CA)
– Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi (D-IL)
– Rep. Russell Fry (R-SC)
– Rep. Nancy Mace (R-SC)— Ross O’Keefe (@RossOKeefe2) July 2, 2025
At the moment, it’s unclear whether the weather will cause any lawmakers to be late for the House votes on Wednesday. One House GOP aide told the Washington Examiner that they believe more lawmakers are having travel snags. Mace said in a livestream while driving that she heard several members were stuck at the Atlanta or Charlotte airports due to ground stops.
Ronald Reagan National Airport, a common airport for lawmakers to fly into, saw dozens of flights canceled on Tuesday night. Several flights on Wednesday into the airport were also canceled, though fewer than on Tuesday. Dulles International Airport and Baltimore-Washington International Airport also saw cancellations and delays.
According to flight tracking company FlightAware, Reagan National saw the second-most canceled flights in the United States, with 139 cancellations. Twenty-nine flights were canceled on Wednesday, the most in the U.S. Meanwhile, Dulles saw 66 flights canceled on Tuesday, while Baltimore saw a lesser impact with just a handful of cancellations.
Members driving to Washington appeared to try to enjoy or make the best of their time.
DeLuzio and Tran drove together, Krishnamoorthi hosted a town hall on Zoom while he drove to the Capitol all the way from Illinois, Fry stopped at popular gas station chain Buc-ee’s to grab sunglasses, and Mace posted a video showing her wearing pajamas in a van driving all night to Washington and asking for song requests.
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House lawmakers are expected back by 9 a.m. on Wednesday to vote on the megabill, which passed the Senate with Vice President JD Vance’s tiebreaking vote on Tuesday after a marathon vote-a-rama.
Despite the long journeys ahead of them, most appeared optimistic. “We got some gas money, we got some snacks, and away we go,” Krishnamoorthi said in his town hall. “My GPS says I’m going to be there just in time.”
