The disagreements within the Republican conference was evident on Tuesday as GOP senators declined important pieces of the recently released stimulus proposal, which is backed by their own leadership. The rebellion, which spans the ideological spectrum from conservatives to moderates in the conference, serves as a new challenge for Majority Leader Mitch McConnell who is seeking to regain the GOP's opening bid and kick off a negotiation with Democrats to confirm a deal ahead of the August recess.

"It's a mistake," United States Senator Ted Cruz said of the recently revealed proposal. He described the bill as a wrong approach and suggested the divert their focus on reopening businesses rather than spending trillions of dollars out of Washington. A Republican from Nebraska, Sen. Ben Sasse revealed that the plan had hundreds of problems.

Sasse criticized the administration for including $1.75 billion for a new FBI building. During their private lunch, Republicans argued with the administration officials for including the money in the bill, which members say was not related to coronavirus.

A Republican from Florida, Sen. Rick Scott expressed his frustration over the administration's decision to include that money in the bill, saying he didn't understand how is it tied to coronavirus. Moreover, he pointed out that he never understood why money was being given to the Kennedy Center or National Endowment for the Arts during a pandemic.

Scott insisted that they need to focus more on solving the problem, while South Carolina Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham admitted that she didn't understand why that money was there in the bill either. McConnell also didn't support the inclusion of FBI funds in the bill, which was unveiled by the GOP leadership on Monday, CNN reported.

Responding to reporters earlier this week, McConnell said he doesn't support the non-germane provisions in the new stimulus and wants anything that's not directly related to coronavirus will be removed. He insisted that he was speaking for himself when he noted that whether it is funding for the FBI building or in the House bill, it is a tax cut for those earning high incomes in states.

Likewise, McConnell said he was opposed to non-germane amendments included in the House bill such as aid to illegal immigrants or marijuana studies. He even acknowledged divisions within his conference during a post-lunch presser.

In May and June, there was a fierce discussion among Republicans about how to deal with another stimulus bill. Republicans senators argued among themselves over whether or not to give states and localities flexibility in terms of how they use stimulus dollars and whether to reduce enhanced unemployment benefits that were a part of the CARES Act, introduced in the spring.