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Yahoo
32 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Trump triumphantly signs bill that shows his hold on the GOP
President Donald Trump said, 'Our country has had so much to celebrate this Independence Day as we enter our 249th year. America's winning, winning, winning like never before,' before signing his 'big, beautiful bill' into law Friday. Multiple Republican members of Congress showed up at the White House for the Fourth of July signing and applauded as Trump showed the camera his signature on what he has described as 'a declaration of independence from a national decline' and then repeatedly banged a gavel handed to him by House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La. 'We have officially made the Trump tax cuts permanent. That's the largest tax cut in the history of our country,' the president said. 'We're setting all sorts of economic records right now, and that's before this kicks in. After this kicks in, our country is going to be a rocket ship, economically.' The bill's passage and signing constitute a major policy win for a second-term president who displayed complete control over the Republican Party — not only by getting the bill passed but also by getting it passed by his self-imposed July 4 deadline. Senate Majority Leader John Thune was among the Republicans who originally wanted to carry out Trump's bill in two distinct legislative measures, but Trump wanted 'one big, beautiful bill.' And he got it. The passage of the massive, nearly 900-page package followed the GOP's decision to ignore the Congressional Budget Office's finding that the bill will increase the national debt by $3.3 trillion over a decade and use a trick known as 'current policy baseline' to obscure the true cost of the plan. The legislation passed over the objections of a few Republicans and every Democrat in the House and the Senate. 'The Republicans in the House of Representatives have just passed the 'ONE BIG BEAUTIFUL BILL ACT,'' Trump wrote on his social media platform after the bill passed the House of Representatives on a 218-214 vote Thursday. 'Our Party is UNITED like never before and, our Country is 'HOT.'' With that phrasing, Trump unintentionally alluded to the number of Americans who are heated over the bill, with its extension of tax cuts for the wealthy, its slashing of Medicaid, food stamps and clean energy funding and its massive budget increases for ICE and the U.S. military. NBC News reported on five polls near the end of June, with none showing support for the bill or its major provisions rising above 38%. On Thursday, House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., channeling the general sentiments of the Democratic Party, called it a 'big, ugly bill' and a 'disgusting abomination.' Ignoring the policy disagreements that compelled Democrats to unanimously oppose his bill, Trump told a crowd in Des Moines, Iowa, that they opposed it 'only because they hate Trump.' He added: 'But I hate them, too, you know? I really do. I hate them. I cannot stand them, because I really believe they hate our country.' This article was originally published on
Forbes
32 minutes ago
- Forbes
From Greenwood To Farish Street: Young Black Leaders Are Creating A New Economic Renaissance
This year's Fourth of July arrives just days after the U.S. Senate passed the so-called 'Big, Beautiful Bill'—a sweeping Republican-backed reconciliation package that threatens deep cuts to Medicaid, housing assistance, and public education. Many Black Americans, especially the leaders striving to rebuild post-disinvestment communities, find the holiday's promises of freedom and prosperity particularly unfulfilling. 'There's no liberty when we have to beg for resources to feed our neighbors,' said D'Marria Monday, founder of Founding Director of Block Builderz, a nonprofit that provides housing and resources to formerly incarcerated women. 'There's no freedom when our ancestors' land is under threat.' D'Marria Monday Born and raised in Tulsa, Oklahoma, Monday knows firsthand what it's like to be in an environment that once thrived but over time, suffered the ills of systemic racism. She says that she stands on the Black people who built Greenwood, a neighborhood in Tulsa, Oklahoma, which was among the most prosperous Black communities in the country during the early 20th century. Known as 'Black Wall Street,' it featured more than 300 Black-owned businesses, including banks, hospitals, restaurants, hotels, and theaters. View of an unspecified parade on Greenwood Avenue, Tulsa, Oklahoma, 1930s or 1940s. Among the ... More visible businesses are the offices of the Oklahoma Eagle newspaper (at 117 North Greenwood Avenue). (Photo by Greenwood) However, in 1921, white mobs, aided by local officials, set fire to the district, resulting in the deaths of hundreds and the displacement of thousands. No one faced accountability, and the survivors received no compensation. 100 years later, Monday says the big, beautiful bill feels sickeningly familiar. An African-American man with a camera looking at the skeletons of iron beds which rise above the ... More ashes of a burned-out block after the Tulsa Race Massacre, Tulsa, Oklahoma, June 1921. (Photo by Oklahoma) As I write this, I agree. The timing underscores a bitter truth: while federal lawmakers celebrate American exceptionalism, grassroots leaders like Monday are forced to bootstrap the very safety nets their communities have been denied. They are restoring the promise of the American dream—not through policy handouts, but through sheer vision, legacy, and resolve. Across the country, Black millennials and xennials are, much like their ancestors, leading a modern movement to restore the rich legacies of historically Black economic districts like Tulsa's Greenwood. A Legacy of Prosperity—and Erasure Further south, Jackson, Mississippi's Farish Street was once a bustling cultural and commercial hub for African Americans during the Jim Crow era. By the 1940s, the strip was home to over 200 Black-owned businesses, including pharmacies, barber shops, and entertainment venues like the Alamo Theater. But redlining, urban renewal, and systemic divestment hollowed out the corridor over the decades. In Bluffton, South Carolina, Black families—especially Gullah-Geechee descendants—once maintained strong economic and cultural footholds. Yet climate change, land theft, and tourism-driven displacement have made land retention a constant battle . Today, a new generation is picking up the torch. Bluffton's Cultural Renaissance In Bluffton, South Carolina, Bridgette Frazier has created Ma Daisy's Porch, a culinary and cultural destination rooted in Gullah heritage. 1930S African-American Girl Little Brother Watching Weaving A Sweetgrass Basket In Front Of Log ... More Cabin Rural South Carolina USA (Photo By H. Armstrong Roberts/Classicstock/Getty Images) 'It was important for me to do this because I saw our people not having space to have their stories told, or to have an economic footprint in an area generating revenue off Gullah culture,' said Frazier, a city council member and entrepreneur. Despite Gullah culture generating an estimated $32 billion annually in South Carolina, she points out that few Gullah natives see even a fraction of that wealth. Bridgette Frazier, Hilton Head, NC council member and owner of Ma Daisy's PorchFrazier's journey was not without resistance. She faced bureaucratic red tape typical of projects in historic districts, along with outright obstruction from local officials. Her concept Ma Daisy's Porch, a hub that includes a restaurant, bakery, museum, and event space, named after her grandmother who was the matriarch in Bluffton, is meant to provide not only a safe space for residents, but also reinvigorate Black business ownership in the area. Ms Daisy's Porch In the past, Bluffton had approximately 15 to 20 Black-owned businesses during the Jim Crow era. However, today, that number is significantly lower, with only two remaining, according to Savannah Magazine. The inequity is stubborn and hard to uproot, according to Frazier. 'I dealt with smear campaigns—even from state senators,' she recalled. Yet, thanks to a values-aligned investor and hands-on executive coaching, Ma Daisy's Porch is now open to the public, and according to her, just the beginning. The Fight for Farish Street That same belief in legacy as a tool for restoration powers the work of Aikisha Holly Colon in Jackson, Mississippi. Alongside her mother, a retired physician and civil rights-era businesswoman, Colon is reviving Farish Street—once the crown jewel of Black economic life in Mississippi. The family is building a new residence next to their historic commercial property, where her mother once ran a medical practice. 'We're trying to get Fair Street back to what it used to be—living and working,' Colon explained. Farish St. Church school children marching on street during parade. (Jackson State University via ... More Getty Images) Their investment is deeply personal. Colon's mother had to use her own funds to renovate the building in the 1980s after banks refused to lend to a Black woman—even a physician. Aikisha Holly Colon is working to revitalize the once thriving Black business district, Farish ... More Street in Jackson, MS. 'Most of us as Black people aren't heirs to anything. We usually inherit debt. But I want my children and grandchildren to be able to say: We've been landowners since 1896,' Colon said. Today, the Jackson Redevelopment Authority is leading a multimillion-dollar revitalization of the 200 block of Farish Street, including a Black-owned grocery store, an upscale bistro, new greenspace, and the relocation of Marshall's Bookstore, the nation's oldest Black-owned bookstore. The vision: to restore Farish as a destination for culture, commerce, and community. Her journey was documented on the OWN reality series, The Belle Collective, which followed the hurdles Colon cleared to restore the legacy of the area. In the series, she's seen leading revitalization efforts by example. Alongside her husband and business partner, former NFL player Willie Colon, they are laying plans to expand their sports bar franchise, Bricks and Hops on to Farish Street. It will be among some of the few businesses, let alone Black-owned, in the area. Colon says it's her mission to ensure it will be the first of many. 'I believe in the future and promise of Farish Street," Colon said. "What once was can happen again--we just have to stay steadfast and act as our ancestors did. Lean on each other.' Reclaiming Tulsa's Future Similar to Colon, Monday is reimagining community development through her organization, Block Builderz. A formerly incarcerated organizer, Monday says her work is rooted in ancestral fire. 'My grandfather had a boarding house on Greenwood. He helped rebuild after the massacre,' she shared. 'I came to Tulsa not knowing that, but I was pulled back by legacy.' She continued that legacy by building a transition home of her own for formerly incarcerated women. Her journey was featured on the OWN docuseries, Rebuilding Black Wall Street. Her approach is as practical as it is revolutionary. 'We're using abandoned lots to create gardens that feed our neighbors. One garden fed 100 people. That's what rebuilding looks like—believing in Black self-determination,' Monday said. While grant funding remains unpredictable, she's focused on grassroots support. 'People closest to the problem are closest to the solution, but farthest from the resources.' Restoring More Than Buildings Together, these women are not just reclaiming physical space—they're restoring historical memory and reshaping futures. Whether through preserving family land, mentoring justice-impacted youth, or creating third spaces for cultural belonging, they're rewriting what the American dream looks like—for themselves and for generations to come. 'In the end, this is about legacy,' Frazier said. 'Not just mine—but all of ours.'
CNN
37 minutes ago
- CNN
Kristen Holmes details why Trump believes size of bill helped him get it across finish line
President Donald Trump signed his sweeping spending and tax legislation, known as the "One Big Beautiful Bill Act," at the White House during July 4 celebrations. CNN's Kristen Holmes reports.
