Ways and Means chairman tells GOP colleagues to carefully thread needle to pass 'big beautiful bill'

House Ways and Means Chairman Jason Smith, R-Mo., said Wednesday that his colleagues need to carefully thread the needle if they want to pass President Donald Trump's "big beautiful bill."

"It's been over in the Senate for a while," Smith said on the "Just the News, No Noise" TV show. "It's go time. This week they need to pass the bill [and] send it back, but they need to carefully thread the needle. I've said all along to my counterparts on the other side of the building: you have to have balance."

Smith said that because Republicans have such a slim majority in Congress, they can't be too extreme on some issues, or the bill won't pass.

The bill includes key components of his agenda, such as no taxes on tips, increased border security funding and extending the president's 2017 tax cuts.

"You can't go too far in one direction, because we have a razor-thin majority in the House of Representatives...this bill passed the House 215-214. They have to use balance and thread that needle," Smith said. 

Trump's goal is to have the bill passed by July 4 and Smith said he still believes it is possible if Congress does it right.

"The president has called and asked for it to be on his desk by July 4," Smith said. "I believe that Congress should deliver that. We passed the bill over six weeks ago. It's been over in the Senate for a while."