After a weekend of setbacks, the Senate will try to sprint ahead Monday on President Donald Trump’s big bill of tax breaks and spending cuts despite a series of challenges, including the sudden announcement that GOP Senator Thom Tillis won’t run for reelection after opposing the package over its Medicaid health care cuts.
The hours ahead will be pivotal for the Republicans, who have control of Congress and are racing against Trump’s self-imposed July 4 deadline. The 940-page “One Big Beautiful Bill Act,” as it is now formally titled, has consumed Congress as its shared priority with the president, with no room politically to fail, even as not all Republicans are on board.
What to know about the Big Beautiful Bill Act:
- The vote-a-rama: An endless stream of proposed amendments to the package, which was supposed to happen overnight but was abruptly canceled, is scheduled to be voted upon as soon as the Senate gavel opens. The voting could take all day. Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer says Democrats will bring “amendment after amendment after amendment to the floor, so Republicans can defend their billionaire tax cuts.”
- GOP Sen. Thom Tillis: The two-term GOP senator from North Carolina announced Sunday he would not seek reelection after Trump badgered him over his opposition to the package. Tillis said he wants to cut taxes and spending, but said that the package is a betrayal of the president’s promises not to kick people off health care, especially if rural hospitals close. Some Republicans are at odds over whether the bill cuts too much — or not enough.
- Congressional Budget Office review: Taking into consideration new changes, the nonpartisan CBO said the bill would pile nearly $3.3 trillion onto the nation’s debt load from 2025 to 2034, a nearly $1 trillion increase over the House-passed version of the bill. The analysis also found that 11.8 million Americans would become uninsured by 2034 if the bill passed, a roughly 1 million-person increase over the scoring for the House’s version.
