Trump Posted a Senator’s Phone Number Over Daylight Saving Time

WASHINGTON – The fight over America’s clocks just got personal. President Donald Trump on Saturday, Oct. 3, posted what he said was the cellphone number of Sen. Tom Cotton (R-Ark.) on Truth Social and urged Arkansans to call him, escalating a weeks-long pressure campaign to pass the Sunshine Protection Act the bill Trump has rebranded the “No More Changing of Clocks Act.”

The move turned a sleepy policy debate about permanent daylight saving time into a national headline. And with clocks set to fall back on Sunday, Nov. 1, millions of Americans are asking the same question: Is daylight saving time ending?

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What Trump Posted and Why

In his Saturday morning post, Trump told Arkansas voters that Cotton, whom he called a friend, was “holding up a very important Bill.” The number he shared carried an Arkansas area code. When Reuters dialed it, the call went straight to a voicemail box that did not identify itself as the senator’s.

It was Trump’s second post about Cotton in two days. In a late-night message on Oct. 2, the president argued that changing clocks twice a year costs the country money, hurts public safety and adds stress, and he said the Senate bill was being held up by Cotton “for reasons unknown.”

Trump’s case for year-round daylight time leans on evening light. He said golfers, tennis players, hunters and farmers all want more sunshine after work, and he specifically cited the PGA Tour’s struggle to finish tournaments before dark. In a follow-up post that afternoon, he added public safety as another reason to end the clock change.

This isn’t the first time Trump has used the tactic. During his 2015 campaign, he read Sen. Lindsey Graham’s phone number aloud at a rally. It also fits a broader habit of turning personal priorities into presidential crusades, from the order to rename Lake Ontario “Lake America” to this clock fight.

Why Tom Cotton Is Blocking the Sunshine Protection Act

Cotton, who chairs the Senate Intelligence Committee, did not back down. His office pointed reporters to a statement reaffirming his opposition, in which he said he dislikes changing the clock as much as anyone but warned that Congress has tried permanent daylight time before and repealed it after Americans saw how late winter sunrises came.

His argument rests on three points:

1. Dark winter mornings – Under permanent DST, the sun would not rise until roughly 8:00–9:30 a.m. in parts of the country during December and January. Cotton has warned that farmers, construction crews, commuters and schoolchildren would start their days in darkness.
2. History – In January 1974, during the energy crisis, the U.S. adopted year-round daylight time. It was popular at first then deeply unpopular once kids were walking to school in the dark. Congress reversed course within the year.
3. Health – Many sleep scientists, including the American Academy of Sleep Medicine, favor permanent standard time, not permanent daylight time, because morning light better matches the body’s internal clock.

In an October 2025 floor speech, Cotton put it bluntly: in his view, not every annoyance needs a federal law to fix it.

How One Senator Can Stall a Bill

The math explains why Trump is focused on a single lawmaker.

The House passed the bill (H.R. 139) on July 14, 2026, by a lopsided 308–117 vote. It then went to the Senate Commerce Committee.

The fastest route to the president’s desk is unanimous consent, a procedure where a bill passes without a recorded vote unless any senator objects. That’s how the Senate approved an earlier version in March 2022. But it only takes one objection to kill that shortcut, and Cotton has supplied it.

Without unanimous consent, the bill needs 60 votes to overcome a filibuster and floor time from leadership. Neither looks likely right now. Senate Majority Leader John Thune voted against the measure in committee and has suggested it may lack 60 votes. Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.) told Reuters the bill is “dead as disco,” noting no votes are scheduled before the November midterms.

Kennedy also defended Cotton on NBC’s Meet the Press on Sunday, saying the president should not have shared his colleague’s number and that the post would not change Cotton’s mind. Whether presidential pressure can move a Senate holdout is a recurring question in this administration, and markets have their own version of it in the TACO trade, the bet that Trump’s hardest pushes eventually give way.

The Public Wants Change, Just Not the Same Change

Polling shows Americans are tired of switching clocks. A YouGov survey from February found 64% want to stop changing clocks twice a year, while only 16% want to keep doing it.

But that majority splits when you ask which time to keep. Some prefer brighter evenings (permanent daylight time); others prefer brighter mornings (permanent standard time). That split is exactly the gap Cotton is exploiting and it’s why states are divided too. Roughly 20 states have passed laws to adopt permanent DST if Congress allows it, while others have weighed permanent standard time instead.

Here’s a detail many people miss: federal law already lets states stay on standard time all year Hawaii and most of Arizona do. What states cannot do without Congress is lock in permanent daylight time. That’s the change the Sunshine Protection Act would make.

Is Daylight Saving Time Ending in 2026?

No. Unless the Senate acts in the next few weeks which lawmakers in both parties say is improbable current law stays in place:

• Nov. 1, 2026: Clocks fall back one hour at 2 a.m. local time.
• March 2027: Clocks spring forward again.

Even if the bill eventually passes, most versions include a delay before taking effect, giving airlines, broadcasters and software makers time to adjust.

What Happens Next

Three things to watch:

• The midterms – The Senate’s post-election agenda is uncertain. A lame-duck session could revive the bill, but it would still need either Cotton’s cooperation or 60 votes.
• Trump’s pressure campaign – The president has made “Lock the Clock” a personal priority. Expect more posts and possibly more pressure on other Republican holdouts.
• The standard-time camp – If Congress ever moves, a compromise that lets states choose permanent standard or permanent daylight time could emerge as a middle path.

For now, the phone-number episode shows how a niche issue can become a loyalty test inside the GOP. It also shows the limits of presidential pressure: a single senator, armed with Senate rules and a 50-year-old history lesson, can still stop the clock, or rather, keep it changing.

For more coverage of the fights shaping Washington, visit DonaldTrump.Coach.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is daylight saving time ending?

Not in 2026. The Sunshine Protection Act passed the House but is stalled in the Senate. Clocks will fall back on Nov. 1, 2026, and spring forward again in March 2027.

Did Trump post Tom Cotton’s phone number?

Yes. On Oct. 3, 2026, Trump shared a number on Truth Social that he said belonged to Cotton and urged Arkansans to call. Reuters reported the number went to an unidentified voicemail box.

Why is Tom Cotton blocking the Sunshine Protection Act?

Cotton argues permanent daylight saving time would create very dark winter mornings for schoolchildren, farmers and commuters. He points to 1974, when the U.S. tried year-round DST and repealed it within the year. He has also cited health research favoring standard time.

What is the No More Changing of Clocks Act?

It’s Trump’s nickname for the Sunshine Protection Act (H.R. 139), which would make daylight saving time permanent nationwide and end the twice-yearly clock change.

Did the House pass the Sunshine Protection Act?

Yes. The House passed it 308–117 on July 14, 2026, with bipartisan support.

Why can’t the Senate just pass it?

Passing it quickly requires unanimous consent, and Cotton objects. Otherwise it needs 60 votes and floor time from Senate leadership, which Majority Leader John Thune has not scheduled.

What is the difference between permanent daylight saving time and permanent standard time?

Permanent DST keeps “summer time” all year, giving lighter evenings but darker winter mornings. Permanent standard time keeps “winter time” all year, giving lighter mornings but earlier sunsets. Both would end the clock change.

Can states stop changing their clocks on their own?

States can choose permanent standard time without Congress (as Hawaii and most of Arizona do). They cannot adopt permanent daylight saving time unless Congress changes federal law.

Has the U.S. ever had permanent daylight saving time?

Yes, briefly. Year-round DST began in January 1974 during the energy crisis and was repealed later that year after public backlash over dark mornings.

When will the next time change?

Sunday, Nov. 1, 2026, at 2 a.m. local time, when clocks move back one hour.

References & Sources

1. Reuters (via WHTC / WMBD) – “Trump shares Republican senator’s phone number in feud over time switch,” Oct. 3, 2026.
2. KSL (Reuters) – Trump shares Republican senator’s phone number in feud over time switch.
3. FOX 32 Chicago – “Trump posts GOP Sen. Tom Cotton’s phone number amid daylight saving time fight,” Oct. 3, 2026.
4. South China Morning Post – Trump shares Senator Tom Cotton’s phone number in daylight saving time clash
5. Al Jazeera – “Trump ramps up pressure on US Republicans to end US clock switching,” Oct. 3, 2026
6. Newsweek – Trump shares Tom Cotton’s cell number in daylight saving time fight (timeline, YouGov data)
7. Newsweek – Trump pushes Senate on daylight savings: how the timeline for change looks (H.R. 139, unanimous consent, 60-vote rule)
8. The Daily Beast – Trump fumes at MAGA loyalist in 385-word ragepost (Thune, 1974 history).
9. The National News Desk (via WJLA) – Republican senator defends Cotton after Trump posts his phone number. 
10. Ground News aggregation of Reuters, Oct. 2, 2026 (“dead as disco”)