Karl Rove: Big, beautiful bill will have ‘huge impact on 2026'
'I think it'll have a huge impact on 2026, because remember, as these changes, particularly the Medicaid changes come into effect, they're going to have, people are going to be losing their coverage,' Rove said during an appearance on Fox News's 'America's Newsroom.'
Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.) decided to forego a re-election bid after voting against his party while urging lawmakers to strike the language regarding Medicaid provisions from the big, beautiful bill, marking a first major impact on the midterms.
Rove lauded the Republican-backed 'big, beautiful bill,' however, cheering its new 80-hour-a-month work requirements for certain Medicaid recipients.
'The able-bodied, think about it, there was an interesting study done of able-bodied people on Medicaid, and that you know what their number one activity was if they weren't working? It was watching television, and number two was playing online games,' Rove told Fox News.
The legislation is set to push millions off of Medicaid coverage and require twice-yearly eligibility check-ins instead of the previous annual evaluation.
Rove encouraged GOP members to continue to lobby in favor of the bill as citizens prepare for sweeping cuts to take effect.
'Medicaid was meant for poor seniors, for children in poor families, and for the disabled, and we should not be paying for health care for people who are able-bodied, and can work, and are refusing to work. This is why they got to go on the offense. But yeah, it's going to be a big impact,' the Republican pundit said.
'And the work is just beginning. There's going to be always a tendency to say, 'We got the bill passed, oh let's all take the time off and good, we got it done.' Uh-uh, that's the requirement that you then go to work,' he added.
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The Hill
33 minutes ago
- The Hill
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Trump himself expressed exasperation with the focus on Epstein when it came up during the Cabinet meeting. 'Are you still talking about Jeffrey Epstein? This guy's been talked about for years. You're asking — we have Texas, we have this, we have all of the things. And are people still talking about this guy? This creep? That is unbelievable,' Trump said. One source close to the White House argued Bongino, in particular, has built up significant goodwill with the MAGA movement, giving him more credibility than figures like Bondi when he speaks about the Epstein case. 'If it were anyone other than Dan saying it, I think there would be a lot more distrust with it,' the source said. The source downplayed that the frustration on the right over the administration's handling of the issue could be a political liability. 'I don't think it's going to make people go, 'Oh, well, we're not voting for Republicans in the midterm because of what the DOJ has done,'' the source said. 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UPI
37 minutes ago
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Netanyahu discusses peace with U.S. lawmakers in D.C.
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The Hill
40 minutes ago
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Trump tees up copper tariffs
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