Republicans in the U.S. House of Representatives just had one of their biggest wins to date. They passed a budget blueprint that President Trump has referred lovingly to as “a big, beautiful bill.”
The bill seeks to offer $4.5 trillion in tax breaks, with an additional $2 trillion in government spending cuts. Despite the proposed positives in the bill, the budget was met with substantial opposition from the Democrats and some unease from a few Republicans.
Several 11-hour phone calls allowed Republicans to utilize their thin majority and pass the bill with a vote of 217-215. Kentucky Representative Thomas Massie was the only Republican to vote against the budget.
Democrats’ main holdback on the bill revolved around perceived tax breaks for the wealthy and a potential cut to the Medicaid program. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries did not hold back when discussing his feelings on the bill.
“They chose their billionaire puppet masters over the American people,” Jeffries said. “Democrats were unified, and we will remain unified throughout this process, because this reckless Republican budget will bring nothing but destruction to the American people.”
The Republicans responded to these concerns by ensuring the American people that Medicaid is not specifically mentioned as a spending cut in the framework of the bill. New York Representative Mike Lawler reassured the public that President Trump has promised not to cut Medicaid.
“The president was clear about that. I was clear about that,” Lawler said. “We will work through this, but the objective today is to begin the process.”
The bill still has a long road to go before it will get passed into law. The House will deliberate over a series of several weeks to prepare the version of the bill they will send to the Senate. The Senate will then take several weeks to review the budget and vote the bill into law.
. Republicans in the House and Senate are set to meet on Wednesday to discuss a unified plan they can bring to Democrats for discussion.
Leave a Reply