The US Congress passed President Donald Trump’s massive tax credit and spending reduction bill, ending Congressional debate and day of overnight voting.
House Republicans pushed a big, beautiful $4.5 trillion (3.8 trillion euros) bill law to make the final legislative passage on Thursday, overcoming multiple setbacks to approve Trump’s second term policy package before the July 4 deadline.
The Tight Roll Call, 218-214, was made at a potentially high political cost, with two Republicans opposed by all Democrats.
The GOP leader worked overnight, and the president himself relied on a handful of skeptics to withdraw his opposition, sending the bill to him to sign the law.
New York Democratic leader Hicombe Jeffries delayed the vote by holding the floor for more than eight hours in a record-breaking speech on the bill.
“We have a big job,” said House Speaker Mike Johnson. “With one big beautiful bill, we intend to make this country stronger, safer and more prosperous than ever.”
The outcome will bring a great victory for the President and his party. Compiling a long list of GOP priorities into one 800-page package was a long-term effort.
With opposition Democrats unified, the bill is a critical measure of Trump’s return to the White House, supported by Republican Congressional control.
Tax credits and safety net reductions
At its core, the package’s priorities are $4.5 trillion (EUR 3.8 trillion) tax credits enacted during Trump’s first term in 2017, expired along with the new ones if Congress fails to act.
This includes allowing workers to deduct tips and overtime salaries, as well as a deduction of $6,000 (Euro 5,105) for most seniors earning less than $75,000 (Euro 63,822) per year.
Additionally, the National Security and Trump’s deportation agenda has a heavily invested in around $350 billion (EUR 297 billion) to help develop the “Golden Dome” defense system in the United States.
To offset lost tax revenue, the package will include a $1.2 trillion (Euro 1 trillion) cut in Medicaid Healthcare and Food Stamp cuts by imposing new work requirements, primarily involving some parents and seniors, and by imposing a massive rollback of the Green Energy Tax Credit.
The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) estimates that the package will add $3.3 trillion (2.8 trillion euros) to the deficit over the decade, with an additional 11.8 million people going without health insurance.
“This is a generational opportunity to provide the most comprehensive and consequential set of conservative reforms in modern history, and that’s exactly what we’re doing,” said Joday Arlington, chairman of the House Budget Committee.
Democrats oppose the “ugly bill”
Democrats were united as taxes on the rich who were paid on the backs of the working class and as the most vulnerable in society, what they called “control abuse.”
The tension was high in the chamber.
Hakeem Jeffries began his speech at 4:53am and ended at 1:37pm. This is a record record 8 hours and 44 minutes later, as he opposed what he called Trump’s “big ugh building.”
“We’re better than this,” Jeffries said.
“I didn’t expect to be on the floor of a house that said this was a crime scene,” Jeffries said.
“It’s a crime scene, chasing health, safety and the happiness of the American people.”
And as a Democrat, he said, “We don’t want a part of it.”
Carrying packages through Congress was difficult from the start. Republicans suffer from the bill at almost every stage of their home and Senate arguing, often only succeeding at the narrowest margin.
The Senate passed the package a few days ago, with Vice President JD Vance defeating Thai vote.
