President Donald Trump helped get House Republicans' budget bill over the line, Fox News Digital was told. (Getty Images)
"He answered my questions," Burchett told Fox News Digital on Wednesday. "He’s very persuasive."
One person who is familiar with the discussions told Fox News Digital that Trump had spoken with Burchett for 15 or 20 minutes on Tuesday afternoon and that the discussion was cordial.
Later, Spartz could be seen on the phone in the House Chamber during an earlier, unrelated vote.
Another source who spoke with Fox News Digital said that Spartz had asked to speak to Trump before she could support the bill and wound up having two calls with him.
Spartz declined to tell reporters how many times she had spoken with Trump and denied a Puck News report that the president had screamed at her over the phone.
"It’s a complete lie," Spartz said.
A third source credited House Majority Whip Tom Emmer, R-Minn., with helping to get Spartz over the line as well.
"Things got very emotional" on the House floor as leaders focused their efforts on Spartz for roughly an hour, the source said.
Rep. Tim Burchett spoke with Trump earlier in the day. (Alex Wong)
Burchett voted for the bill, and Spartz followed suit. Davidson, who also voted yes, said he had done so because he had gotten assurances from House GOP leaders about the March 14 government-funding deadline.
"I voted ultimately . . . once I received the assurances I need that there would be actual cuts to discretionary spending. And, you know, everything about this is avoided," Davidson told reporters.
But a GOP lawmaker who spoke with Fox News Digital credited Trump with rescuing the bill due to his persuasion of Burchett and Spartz.
When reached for comment, a White House official told Fox News Digital that the resolution had been on life support until Trump saved it.
"As a master dealmaker, President Trump is always active in negotiations on Capitol Hill, and the budget bill was on life support until President Trump urged Members of Congress to pass it," the White House official said. "The House and Senate must ensure that the final product encompasses all of the president's priorities, but the budget passed this week was an extremely positive step towards one big, beautiful bill that puts America First."
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A spokesperson for Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., referred Fox News Digital to his comments after the vote: "This is the first important step in opening up the reconciliation process. We have a lot of hard work ahead of us, but we are going to deliver the America First agenda. We're going to deliver all of it, not just parts of it. And this is the first step in that process."
Fox News Digital reached out to Spartz's office but did not receive comment by filing deadline.
Elizabeth Elkind is a politics reporter for Fox News Digital leading coverage of the House of Representatives. Previous digital bylines seen at Daily Mail and CBS News.
Follow on Twitter at @liz_elkind and send tips to elizabeth.elkind@fox.com
https://www.foxnews.com/politics/master-dealmaker-inside-trumps-budget-bill-victory-amid-house-gop-rebellion