House passes sprawling domestic policy bill, sending it to Trump's desk
The mostly party-line vote of 218-214 came one day ahead of Trump's July 4 deadline and caps an arduous process that lasted more than four months, rife with ideological clashes and acrimony between the House and Senate, where Republicans had little margin for error given their narrow majorities.
In the end, the GOP largely unified to pack the bulk of Trump's domestic agenda into a single measure, with just Reps. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., and Brian Fitzpatrick, R-Pa., voting against it. A bloc of Republican holdouts had initially opposed a procedural vote Wednesday to advance the bill, leading to an hourslong overnight standoff. But Trump and Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., managed to sway all but one of them, teeing up final passage in the House.
Trump is now expected to sign the bill into law on Independence Day, marking the party's biggest legislative accomplishment since taking full control of Washington in January.
The 887-page package extends the tax cuts Trump enacted in 2017, while temporarily slashing taxes on tips and overtime pay. It approves hundreds of billions of dollars in new spending on the military and to carry out Trump's mass deportation plans. And it partially pays for all that with steep cuts to Medicaid, food aid benefits and clean energy funding. That includes an estimated $930 billion in spending reductions under Medicaid, violating Trump's promise not to cut the program.
Overall, the bill is projected to increase the national debt by $3.3 trillion over a decade, with the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office finding that the revenue losses of $4.5 trillion outstrip the spending cuts of $1.2 trillion. The bill also increases the debt ceiling by $5 trillion.
Throughout the process, Republican leaders had an ace in the hole to corral the votes even as the competing demands of rival factions appeared irreconcilable: They knew their members wouldn't ultimately say no to Trump, from the most conservative to the least ideological and politically vulnerable.
Republicans often turned to Trump throughout the process to help close the deal on key votes. He regularly held meetings with and made phone calls with key lawmakers, while issuing the occasional threat on Truth Social to holdouts who stood in the bill's way. Vice President JD Vance was also a regular presence in Senate and House meetings around the bill.
'If President Trump and Vice President Vance had not engaged at the time they did, it wouldn't have passed,' said conservative Rep. Tim Burchett, R-Tenn., who attended White House meetings in the Oval Office and Cabinet Room Wednesday and ultimately voted for the bill.
Speaking to reporters in the wee hours of the morning, Johnson said Trump had been making phone calls to recalcitrant holdouts as late as 1 a.m. Thursday to help break an impasse on the floor.
'He doesn't really sleep a lot,' said Johnson, who also dangled the prospect of future bills to address concerns and demands from a variety of members.
In his 1 a.m. call with holdouts, Trump and other White House officials made promises to aggressively implement key provisions in the bill — from clean energy tax credit phase outs to new Medicaid restrictions, a source familiar with the call said.
One by one, the GOP critics folded and accepted demands they insisted they wouldn't. Conservatives swallowed a bill that adds trillions to the debt. Politically vulnerable Republicans endorsed steep cuts to Medicaid and health care spending that are projected by CBO to cost 11.8 million people their insurance. Republicans whose districts and states benefit from clean energy incentives ended up voting to strip them away.
'They're just afraid of Trump and the backlash that would ensue if he called them out,' Massie, who opposed the bill, told NBC News the day before the final vote. 'I'm not concerned.'
Trump and his allies sought to strike fear in GOP lawmakers by vowing to support a primary challenger to Massie in his next election. Massie said Trump's real goal was to keep other Republicans in line by sending a message that defying him comes with political pain.
'They're whipping this horse, because I'm out of the barn, to keep the other horses in the barn,' he said.
Later, on the 1 a.m. call with Trump, Massie remarked how it'd be nice if Trump stopped attacking him, the source said, then flipped from no to yes on the key procedural vote.
The House took up the bill after the Senate voted 51-50 to pass the legislation on Tuesday, with Vance breaking the tie. The only Republicans who voted against it were Sens. Rand Paul, R-Ky., Thom Tillis, R-N.C. and Susan Collins, R-Maine. The party used the filibuster-proof 'budget reconciliation' process to get around the 60-vote threshold, which meant that some non-budgetary provisions were stripped out.
Every Democrat in both chambers voted against the bill, blasting it as a tax cut for the wealthy that is paid for by cutting programs like Medicaid that benefit the working class. They plan to place a heavy focus on the bill in their message to voters ahead of the 2026 midterm elections, emboldened by polls showing that the legislation is unpopular.
At the start of a record-breaking floor speech Thursday morning that lasted for 8 hours and 44 minutes, House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., ripped what he called the 'big, ugly bill, this disgusting abomination,' and accused Republicans of working through the night to pass it because it would kick millions of Americans off Medicaid and food stamps. Republicans argued that work requirements would target waste, fraud and abuse in those programs.
'Why did debate begin at 3:28 a.m. in the morning?' Jeffries asked with House Democrats filling the seats behind him. 'Republicans are once again, which has been the case, Mr. Speaker, through every step of this journey, trying to jam this bill through the House of Representatives under cover of darkness.'
Republicans began making plans for their reconciliation package even before last year's presidential election. In March 2024, House Republicans huddled at their annual retreat, at the Greenbrier Resort in West Virginia, to brainstorm what should be included in the bill so they'd be better prepared than in 2017.
But after Republicans took unified control of the White House and Congress in January, fissures in the party quickly began to emerge. Senate leaders pushed to carry out Trump's agenda in two separate bills, before the president endorsed the House approach of passing his agenda in 'one big, beautiful bill,' which eventually became the title of the legislation.
Along the way, all 53 Senate Republicans voted to set a novel precedent by using a budget trick known as ' current policy baseline ' that treats $3.8 trillion in Trump tax cut extensions as costing $0, in order to avoid satisfying Senate rules requiring that they be paid for. Democrats said it was akin to the 'nuclear option' will weaken the 60-vote threshold going forward.
Still, Democrats did get a jab at Trump in the process: They deleted the title, 'One Big Beautiful Bill Act,' by successfully arguing that the name wasn't budgetary in nature. The legislation's official title is instead, 'An Act to provide for reconciliation pursuant to title II of H. Con. Res. 14.'
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Guardian
33 minutes ago
- The Guardian
Here we go again: latest Trump tariff deadline looms amid inflation concerns
When Donald Trump unveiled his 'liberation day' tariffs in the spring, only to pull the plug days later as panic tore through global markets, his officials scrambled to present the climbdown as temporary. Three months of frenetic talks would enable the Trump administration to strike dozens of trade agreements with countries across the world, they claimed. 'We're going to run,' the White House trade adviser Peter Navarro told Fox Business Network. 'Ninety deals in 90 days is possible.' The 90-day pause Trump ordered on his steep tariffs is almost up, and 90 deals have not materialized. The US is again on the brink of launching a trade assault against dozens of countries, with rates including 27% on Kazakhstan, 47% on Madagascar and 36% on Thailand. 'I'm not thinking about the pause,' the president claimed during a briefing with reporters earlier this week, when asked about Wednesday's deadline. 'I'll be writing letters to a lot of countries. And I think you're just starting to understand the process.' Business leaders, lobbyists, economists and investors might disagree. Even officials in Trump's own administration have at times struggled to keep up. Another cliff edge has reared into view, forcing them to return to a familiar question: will he actually go through with this? 'I would suspect he's serious,' said Marc Busch, professor of international business diplomacy at Georgetown University. 'I think he's going to give a pass to the countries negotiating in good faith. But as of 9 July, a lot of the news will be big tariffs that the US hasn't seen since the 1930s are in effect.' A handful of agreements have emerged, cooling some tensions. A partial deal with the UK was first to emerge, before a delicate truce with China, and a pact with Vietnam. Officials are also said to be closing in on a 'framework' arrangement with the EU. But these breakthroughs have been significantly narrower than conventional free trade agreements, which can take years to hammer out. 'These aren't real trade deals. These are cessations of hostility,' said Busch. 'These are purchasing agreements that may or may not appease Trump for maybe a little while, thrown in with some aspirational stuff.' Even if Trump extends the 90-day pause next week, or strikes myriad deals at breakneck pace, current tariff levels are still much higher than they were before his return to office. The effects of this are still filtering through to prices for US consumers. 'The US economy is definitely, I would say, breaking more to the positive than would have been the narrative, or the expectation, kind of right after liberation day,' said John Waldron, president of Goldman Sachs. 'There's still an expectation that we're going to see more inflation over the course of the summer.' Mid-sized businesses in the US face an estimated $82.3bn in additional costs if the US maintains a 10% universal rate on all imports, as well as higher rates of 55% on China and 25% on Mexico and Canada, according to analysis by the JPMorganChase Institute. Such firms 'often play a crucial role in regional economies and as part of larger supply chains', said analysts at the institute. 'If they struggle, it may cause ripple effects for other businesses and their communities.' If the 'liberation day' tariffs are reimposed after the pause, costs would rise significantly. But even if they are not, the duties Trump has already introduced – and remain in force – are leaving companies with a hefty bill. The administration's playbook, of hiking tariffs on a country dramatically and then cutting them back as a result of an agreement, is 'like a retailer that one day increases prices by 100% and another day announces a 30% sale', said Busch. 'It's quite extraordinary that we're still debating this issue,' he added. 'American businesses are already eating and passing on parts of these tariffs to consumers.' No senior federal official has been more vocal about this reality than Jerome Powell, chair of the Federal Reserve, who – despite Trump's public demands and attacks – has kept US interest rates on hold while waiting to see how the administration's trade strategy pans out. 'Someone has to pay for the tariffs,' Powell said at a recent press conference, noting how the cost filters through a supply chain, from the initial manufacturer through to the customer buying a product. 'All through that chain, people will be trying not to be the ones who pick up the cost. 'But ultimately, the cost of the tariff has to be paid and some of it will fall on the end consumer. We know that. That's what businesses say. That's what the data says from past evidence. So we know that's coming.' Trump does not see it this way, insisting that tariffs are taxes on other countries, rather than US businesses and consumers. Whatever happens over the next few days, those attempting to take a longer-term view believe the main actions he has taken in recent months – like imposing blanket 10% tariffs – could remain in place for many years to come. 'We think it's likely that high and broad-based tariffs are here to stay because, of all the purported goals of trade policy, they're proving most successful at raising revenue,' said Michael Pearce, deputy chief US economist at Oxford Economics. 'Given the fiscal challenges that lie ahead, those revenues will be hard for future administrations to replace.'
BBC News
an hour ago
- BBC News
Wetin di new US tax mean for money wey pipo for abroad dey send to family and friends back home
Di One Big Beautiful Act wey don dey signed into law by di U.S. President Donald Trump dey impose a 1% tax on certain types of cross-border money transfers. Dis go cause worry among African migrants and dia families wey dey rely on cash wey dem dey send give dem from obodoyinbo. For 2024, at least $12 billion bin flow from di United States to African families through remittances. But dis newly approved 1% tax on informal money transfers fit comot millions from dat stream. Di US President Trump budget mega-bill become law afta e pass a final vote for di House of Representatives and afta Congress bin debate di package for days, as members of both di House and Senate also work overnights for di Capitol. Join Pidgin WhatsApp Channel for similar tori dem. However, while di final tax rate dey far lower dan di 3.5% wey dem first propose, di law dey target specific remittance channels. E also apply to transfers wey dem dey make through cash, money orders, or cashier cheques, wit exemptions for transactions wey dem dey send through bank accounts or U.S.-issued debit and credit cards. 'Dis na tax on progress' A Nigerian-born professor wey base for Minnesota, wey no wan make we mention im name, tell di BBC say di tax go directly affect how e dey send money to relatives for Enugu. "I dey build a retirement home for my village and dis require me to send money evritime for di project. I also send money to support my mama back home," e tok. Dis week alone, e don send $700 for building materials. "E fit look like just $7 on evri $700 wey we send, but dis na tax on progress, care, and support. Di emotional cost dey bigger dan di financial one." Though e prefer to use banks, e admit say cash apps dey faster, especially during emergencies. "No be evrione wey we support back home get a bank account. Many dey rely on pickup centres or cash agents. Dis law be like say e blind to dat reality." Di law dey scheduled to take effect on January 1, 2026 as part of a broader effort to boost federal revenues. Di tax dey aimed to tightening oversight of informal cross-border transfers, a category wey include many of di ways African migrants dey send money home. But for millions of African families, dis informal channels no just common, dem dey essential. For Yasmine Atim, a 22-year-old Ugandan computer science student for Texas, di tax go force her to retink how she dey send money to her younger siblings for Central Uganda. "I no dey work full-time, but I try to send $100, $150, or $200 wen I fit," she tok. "Even if na just $1, dat na di money my brother fit use to get a textbook or transport to school." Yasmine dey use a mix of cash apps. "I try to set up a wire transfer once, but my bank no allow international transactions from a student account." For her, remittances no be just about money but about to stay emotionally connected to home. "Sometimes, di only way I fit show up for my family na to send dat money. E dey hurt to tink say di govment want a piece of dat. I fit try make I no send big amounts to reduce di number of transactions wey dem go tax. But dat no go make sense. Family need help wen dem need am." Wetin e mean for Africa Di final text of di law tok say, "we hereby impose on any remittance transfer a tax wey equal 1% of di amount of such transfer. Na di sender go pay di tax." While exemptions exist for transfers through U.S. financial institutions or dose wey dey funded by U.S.-issued debit or credit cards, many African migrants still dey depend on informal channels. Wit foreign aid to Africa wey dey reduce, remittances don become a lifeline. According to World Bank data, remittance flows into Africa bin pass $92 billion (€81 billion) for 2024, wit at least $12 billion wey dey come from di United States. Di U.S. remain di biggest origin kontri for global remittances wey dey account for ova $656 billion for2023 alone. Top African Remittance Recipients (2024) Kontri Remittances ($) Egypt 22.7 Billion Nigeria 19.8 Billion Morocco 12.0 Billion Kenya 4.8 Billion Ghana 4.6 Billion Senegal 3.0 Billion Zimbabwe 3.0 Billion Zambia 2.8 Billion Uganda 1.49 Billion DR Congo 1.3 Billion Source: World Bank, 2024 According to di Africa Finance Corporation 2025 State of Africa Infrastructure Report, remittances don consistently pass foreign direct investment, portfolio flows, and official development assistance. Dis make am di most stable and dependable source of external finance from Africa. "Remittances dey more dan money," di professor for Minnesota tok. "Dem be infrastructure, education, medical care, food, and dignity. To tax am na like to tax veri engine of development for many African homes."
Scottish Sun
2 hours ago
- Scottish Sun
Desperate Putin brainwashing TODDLERS with cartoons starring baby Trump to indoctrinate kids ‘as early as possible'
Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) TWISTED Putin's brainwashing programme has plunged to new depths with a dystopian propaganda cartoon aimed at toddlers. The animated kids' show uses toddler versions of world leaders to plant pro-Putin and anti-Western sentiments before kids can even walk or talk. Sign up for Scottish Sun newsletter Sign up 16 Sandpit features animated versions of Putin, Trump, Macron, Musk, Erdogan and Kim (top left to bottom right) Credit: Telegram 16 A gentle, wide-eyed Putin with a bear and a ship symbolising the Black Sea Fleet Credit: Telegram 16 Putin's propaganda machine targets children to boost support for his faltering war Credit: Alamy Putin's chief propagandist, Vladimir Solovyov, spearheaded the new show called Sandpit. The producers say its aim is to "instil patriotism from an early age" and teach Russian infants to "discuss geopolitics". A 30-second trailer posted on Solovyov's Telegram account shows toddler versions of Putin, Trump, Macron, Musk, Erdogan and Kim Jong-un chatting on a video call. At one point, Kim tells Macron he shouldn't be allowed to hang out with the others because 'you're always with your grandma' - a jibe at the French president's wife, Brigitte, who is 24 years his senior. When Trump asks why their call is taking place on a Russian video app, Putin fires back with a jab at Western technology: 'Because your Skype cut out, that's why.' Speaking to The Sun, Dr Alasdair McCallum, a Russian propaganda expert at Australia's Monash University, says: "The Sandpit cartoon is taking things to new extremes. "You have these quite bizarre AI-generated cartoons aimed at toddlers. "The aim is to indoctrinate from as early as possible - before they can even walk.' Dr McCallum thinks the message in the trailer couldn't be more obvious. He explains: 'The idea is that Russia is strong and the West is weak, so Trump, Macron and Musk are depicted as goofy and incapable of making strong decisions, whereas the little toddler version of Putin is very strong and composed.' Inside Putin's chilling 10-year plot to build army of West-hating 'child zombies' to prepare for war with Nato Putin, whose face appears kind and calm, is shown wearing a crisp white judo uniform. Next to the Russian president sit a teddy bear, a symbol of national identity, and a black toy ship, representing the Russian Navy's Black Sea Fleet. Meanwhile Kim, who is currently sending troops and weapons to back Putin's war in Ukraine, comes across as missile-mad, gripping a toy rocket tightly with both hands. Towering missiles also loom in the background of the dictator's room - which, with its lack of windows, resembles a bunker. And to drive the point home further, Kim's email address - BigBadaBoom@ - is a blatant nod to explosions, paired with the mock domain of North Korea's capital. Erdogan, whose email address is LuxuryTurkey@ is also portrayed in a wildly exaggerated style. Wearing the traditional fez, the Turkish president appears against an ornate, Ottoman-inspired backdrop. While presidents like Erdogan and Macron show cracks of anxiety, Trump and Musk grin smugly. The businessman-turned-president sits in a gaudy room, while the Tesla CEO appears fixated on his toy car. The cartoons even have their own avatars: Putin is a bear with a red star, Kim is a mushroom cloud and Trump is the pope blessing worshippers. Many of the references will sail right over kids' heads, Dr McCallum admits, but he says they serve the additional aim of shocking the rest of the world. He explains: 'A lot of Russian propaganda has a kind of shock element to it. "This is why you often see extreme messages about the amount of nukes they could drop on Britain.' He believes the timing of the show's launch is far from a coincidence. UK intelligence revealed in early June that Russia has suffered huge war losses, with about one million of its own soldiers either killed or wounded in the war in Ukraine since February 2022. 16 Sandpit aims to 'instil patriotism from an early age', according to its producers Credit: Telegram 16 A missile-mad Kim Jong-un is shown holding a toy rocket Credit: Telegram 16 A distressed Macron is teased over his older wife Brigitte, who is called his 'grandma' Credit: Telegram 16 Putin has ramped up propaganda aimed at children Credit: AP "They need to replenish that manpower, they have to try to indoctrinate them early,' says Dr McCallum. But he finds it hard to imagine any of Solovyov's eight privileged, Western-educated kids - born to three different women - dying on the front line in Donetsk. "It's always the lower echelons of society that get fed into this propaganda mill and then go to fight and die,' he adds. Sandpit comes as the Kremlin ramps up efforts to target children - both Russian and Ukrainian - with state propaganda. At Russia's Victory Day parades, prams are turned into cardboard tanks and babies are dressed in tiny army uniforms. Youth groups like Yunarmiya, along with school visits featuring war veterans, actively expose kids - even as young as preschool age - to the world of weaponry and military culture. While boys are targeted with militaristic messaging, girls are fed pro-natalist narratives, pushing them toward motherhood and care-giving roles, says Dr McCallum. Teenage girls are reportedly paid as much as £1,000 to have babies in more than 10 regions across Russia, including Oryol and Yaroslavl in the west, and Kemerovo in Siberia. A TV show previously called 'Pregnant at 16' - intended to discourage teenage pregnancies - was rebranded as 'Mama at 16' in January. Each episode now opens with the more optimistic phrase "I'm expecting a child" instead of the former "I'm pregnant". The channel that airs 'Mama at 16' also broadcasts similarly themed shows like 'Supermum', 'Maternity Ward Days', 'Call Me Mum' and 'Mama at 45'. Its website reads: 'Yu is a reality show network about the most important things for a young woman: family, children, mother-in-laws, mums, friends and, of course, love.' 16 Russian President Vladimir Putin and leading TV propagandist Vladimir Solovyov Credit: East2West 16 Who is Vladimir Solovyov? VLADIMIR Solovyov is a leading TV presenter and pro-Putin propagandist. Born in 1963 to a Jewish family in Moscow, he has hosted the prime-time show Evening with Vladimir Solovyov on state channel Russia-1 since 2012. Known for his staunch support of Putin's policies, Solovyov has been a vocal advocate for Russia's war in Ukraine. On the eve of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, Solovyov was sanctioned by the EU and banned from entering its member states. Solovyov at the time said: "Today is the day that a righteous operation was launched for the de-Nazification in Ukraine." In August 2022, following proposals by some EU countries to ban tourist visas for Russians, Solovyov even suggested missile strikes on Berlin, Paris, London and Brussels. At school, children face mandatory weekly lessons called 'Conversations about Important Things', where patriotism is drilled in and dying for the Motherland is glorified. The course was introduced in September 2022 - eight months after Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine. In September 2023, new history textbooks were distributed across Russian schools that glorify Russia, omit criticism of Stalin and portray the West as aggressors. Children are taught that Ukraine is a 'Nazi state' and that Russia's invasion is justified - no different to Putin's claim that it's 'a question of life and death, the question of our historic future as a people'. Dr McCallum explains: 'A central element of Russian propaganda is that Russia and ethnic Russians were the sole victors over Nazism and that Ukraine is an artificial Nazi state. "But this doesn't gel with the reality of a Jewish president [Zelensky] and support from European countries." 16 Russian children enrolled in the Youth Army are seen trying on gas masks Credit: Reuters 16 The Kremlin is trying to boost support for its military among children Credit: Reuters 16 Solovyov is a leading figure on Russia's state-run TV, where he regularly calls for the destruction of the West Credit: East2West More Russians are rejecting Putin's propaganda Contrary to popular belief, the majority of Russians do not rely solely on state-controlled TV. Dependence on state TV dropped sharply from around 90 percent to just over 60 percent from 2013 to 2021, according to the Atlantic Council. Meanwhile, over 85 percent of Russians are said to have internet access. Despite increased Kremlin censorship, independent platforms like YouTube and Telegram remain accessible in Russia. Many people also use virtual private networks (VPNs) to bypass restrictions. The majority of Russians still back the war in Ukraine, according to the latest 2025 surveys from Levada Center, Statista, and VCIOM. But the data reveals a growing appetite for peace talks. Younger generations, in particular, show lower support for the conflict compared to their elders. However, experts warn that public surveys on Russian support for the war should be taken with a pinch of salt, as censorship and fear of repercussions can dictate people's responses. Over 500 Russian teenagers have been arrested at anti-war rallies since 2022, according to human rights group OVD-Info. One of them, Arseny Turbin, was just 15 when he was arrested and accused of joining the Freedom of Russia Legion - a group made up of Russian citizens fighting alongside Ukraine. He was also charged with distributing leaflets critical of Vladimir Putin and the war. Arseny was sentenced to five years in a youth detention centre in November last year - where he remains to this day. 16 A classroom of Russian children in Moscow 16 A Russian boy examines an AK-74 Kalashnikov assault rifle at a military exhibition 16 A Russian military officer accepts flowers from a girl during Victory Day parade Credit: AFP 16 The reality show 'Mama at 16' has been criticised as encouraging girls to become teen mums
