Republicans are pushing to win Trump’s approval so much that they named the most recent bill the “THE ONE, BIG, BEAUTIFUL BILL” using the president’s child-speak to ignore the fact that if approved, the disastrous legislation proposal will reduce Medicaid health care and food stamps funding significantly.
According to the Associated Press, tensions rose during a late-night session that dragged into Wednesday morning as Democrats finally began fighting back by submitting more than 100 amendments that were largely ignored by Republicans, who desperately want to pass the president’s signature legislation.
“People feel very strong because they know they’re losing their health care,” Rep. Frank Pallone, D-N.J., on the Energy & Commerce Committee, told AP.
From AP:
It’s the biggest political and legislative debate for the Republicans leading Congress since Trump’s first term, setting up a career-defining clash over the nation’s priorities, all coming at a time of economic unease with Trump’s trade war and other uncertainties.
Trump, speaking at a forum in the Middle East, struck an ambitious chord, saying Congress was “on the verge of passing the largest tax cut and regulation cut in American history.”
“If we get that, that will be like a rocket ship for our country,” Trump said in Saudi Arabia.
But to be sure, there are many more steps before the package becomes law.
The bill would extend tax cuts from 2017 and would include Trump’s 2024 campaign promises not to tax tips, Social Security, and car interest loans. There would also be a larger deduction, $32,000 for couples, a boost to the Child Tax Credit, and a $30,000 cap on state and local tax deductions.
“That’s offset by $1.9 trillion in savings largely from the rollback of green energy tax credits, for a net tally of $3.7 trillion in costs over the decade, according to the most recent estimates — along with billions more in savings from the safety net cuts,” AP reports.
Oh, and there would be some $350 billion to fund Trump’s mass deportation plans and the Pentagon.
And to be able to do this, Republicans are looking to cut some $800 billion over the next 10 years to the Medicaid health care program, “which is used by 70 million Americans; $290 billion to food aid in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, known as SNAP; and others,” AP reports.
Speaker Mike Johnson has already claimed that he wants this bill pushed through by Memorial Day, sending it to the Senate, where Republicans are working on their own version. Johnson has been given the reins to create a bill that can get the 218 votes needed to pass the House, but good luck with that.
Senators of rural states are concerned that the bill, as it stand,s would leave many of their constituents without healthcare, or forced to pay more.
“Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) said he’s fine with the new work requirements and antifraud provisions that House Republicans have proposed for Medicaid, but he raised concerns about their “cost-sharing” proposal, which he said would make ‘beneficiaries pay more.’”
“These are working people in particular who are going to have to pay more,” Hawley told The Hill. “The provider tax in particular, that could have a big impact in my state and lead to reduced coverage, so I’ve got some concerns. I think we need to look really, really carefully at that. I continue to maintain my position that we should not be cutting Medicaid benefits,” he said.
So now we wait, but the GOP is doing it wrong if Hawley, one of the most staunch Republicans, is not on board with the bill in the shape that it’s in.
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