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President Donald Trump’s sweeping tax overhaul is headed to the Senate, with a push for even deeper cuts than the House-approved bill. The legislation, over 1,000 pages long, promises extended tax breaks, reforms to Medicaid and food stamps, and funding boosts for Trump’s immigration agenda.
Speaking from the White House on May 30, Trump expressed his desire for steeper tax cuts: “I’d like to see a bigger cut in taxes. It’s going to be jiggered around a little bit.”
The House narrowly passed the bill despite facing criticism from some Republicans and protests at town halls. Speaker Mike Johnson has called on Senate Republicans to make minimal changes, but several senators, including Ron Johnson, Rick Scott, Mike Lee, and Rand Paul, are voicing concerns about the bill’s projected $3.8 trillion deficit over ten years.
Others, such as Susan Collins and Josh Hawley, are worried about the $625 billion cut to Medicaid, which could remove 7.6 million low-income Americans from coverage. Senators Lisa Murkowski, John Curtis, and Thom Tillis have raised concerns about the rollback of renewable energy credits that benefited their states.
Senate Majority Leader John Thune faces a tough challenge with a slim Republican majority. He must secure near-unanimous GOP support, as Democrats remain opposed, criticizing the bill as favoring the wealthy while slashing essential services.
Democrats warn of the potential fallout, with Senator Chris Murphy stating: “When rural hospitals close because of this bill, when drug treatment clinics close in Iowa and rural America, more people will die at a younger age.”
With a July 4 target for passage, the Senate has only four working weeks to negotiate changes, reconcile differences with the House, and send the bill to Trump’s desk. The urgency is heightened by Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent’s warning that the U.S. could hit the debt ceiling in August. The bill also proposes a $4 trillion increase in the debt limit to avoid default.
