By LISA MASCARO and KEVIN FREKING
President Donald Trump insists that “NO ONE GOES ON VACATION” until the significant bill is on his desk by the Fourth of July deadline. Republicans in Congress are committed to staying put until it’s done.
The Senate is preparing for weekend work, while House Speaker Mike Johnson has advised lawmakers to keep their schedules “flexible” as they gear up for more votes.
“We are making good headway,” said Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D. He anticipates that the Senate will finalize this by the end of the week and send it back to the House for swift action.
However, the GOP’s efforts to make swift changes, particularly cuts to federal government programs like Medicaid and SNAP food stamps, are facing challenges. Not all Republican lawmakers are in agreement, and the Senate parliamentarian has flagged several key proposals for violating procedural rules. With Democrats in opposition, GOP leaders are scrambling just days before the final votes.
Here’s the latest on what’s included, excluded, and still under debate as lawmakers strive to complete the extensive 1,000-page plus package.
What’s the focus of the comprehensive bill? Tax cuts.
The primary objective for Republicans is to prevent a substantial tax increase, estimated at $3.8 trillion, after the expiration of the tax breaks implemented during Trump’s first term in 2017.
The comprehensive bill aims to make existing tax rates and brackets permanent, while also introducing temporary new ones proposed by Trump during his campaign. These include exemptions on tips, overtime pay, and certain automotive loans. The Senate draft also features a larger $6,000 deduction for seniors earning up to $75,000 annually.
Wealthier households stand to gain a $12,000 increase, while the poorest individuals could face a $1,600 annual cost, as per the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office.
Middle-income taxpayers could expect a tax break ranging from $500 to $1,500, according to the CBO.
One provision in the bill would enhance the child tax credit from $2,000 to $2,200 in the Senate proposal or $2,500 in the House. However, families at lower income levels may not receive the full amount, if at all.
There’s an unresolved issue regarding the House’s proposed $40,000 cap on state and local deductions (SALT), which GOP senators believe is excessive and want to restrict.
The bill also allocates funds for deportations, a border wall, and Trump’s heroes garden
The comprehensive package includes approximately $350 billion in new funding for Trump’s border and national security initiatives.
Trump has pledged the largest mass deportation effort in U.S. history, with provisions in the package for hiring 10,000 new Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers, offering $10,000 signing bonuses, and funding 100,000 immigration detention beds with the aim of deporting around 1 million individuals annually.
Moreover, the House bill proposes $12 billion for the Homeland Security secretary to distribute grants to states aiding in federal immigration enforcement and deportation activities. The Senate package also includes $3.5 billion for the attorney general to establish a similar state fund named Bridging Immigration-related Deficits Experienced Nationwide (Biden), in reference to the former president.
New immigrants entering the U.S. would face increased fees, including a $1,000 fee for those seeking asylum protections.
Furthermore, there are provisions for the development of Trump’s “Golden Dome” missile defense system over the U.S. and quality of life enhancements for military personnel.
Additionally, there’s a proposal from the Senate to allocate $40 million for the establishment of Trump’s long-desired “National Garden of American Heroes.”
How will it be funded? Through cuts to Medicaid, SNAP, and green energy programs
To offset some of the lost tax revenue, Republicans are aiming to scale back long-standing government programs like Medicaid, food stamps, and green energy incentives, effectively reversing the achievements of the past two Democratic presidents, Joe Biden and Barack Obama.
Republicans argue that they are working to tailor the safety net programs to the population they were initially intended to serve—primarily pregnant women and children—and eliminate waste, fraud, and abuse.
The package includes new 80-hour-a-month work requirements for many adults receiving Medicaid and food stamps, including individuals up to 65 years old. Parents of children older than 10 would need to work to qualify for food aid, and those with teenagers would have to fulfill the work requirement for Medicaid.
“It’s widely supported,” Johnson stated on Tuesday, emphasizing that individuals can work, volunteer, attend school, or participate in job training programs. “Let’s do something constructive.”
Approximately 80 million Americans depend on Medicaid, which expanded under Obama’s Affordable Care Act, and 40 million utilize the Supplemental Nutritional Assistance Program (SNAP), with most already employed, according to analysts.
Overall, the CBO estimates that at least 10.9 million more individuals would be without health coverage, and 3 million more would no longer qualify for food stamps.
Deeper SNAP cuts that would shift cost-sharing to the states have been questioned by the Senate parliamentarian and are undergoing revisions. Further changes to Medicaid are under discussion, including a Senate proposal to reduce the provider tax imposed by most states on hospitals and other entities.
Key GOP senators and a group of House Republicans caution that lower Medicaid provider tax cuts could harm rural hospitals. “We cannot support a final bill that threatens access to coverage,” stated 16 House GOP lawmakers in a letter to leadership.
Senators are contemplating the establishment of a new rural hospital fund, but the details are still being ironed out. They have also raised objections to the House’s suggested new $35 co-pay on Medicaid services.
Both House and Senate bills propose a substantial rollback of the green energy tax breaks introduced during the Biden administration for electric vehicles, as well as the production and investment tax credits utilized by companies for renewable energy projects like wind and solar.
Altogether, the cuts to Medicaid, food stamps, and green energy programs are anticipated to yield at least $1.5 trillion in savings.
What’s the final price tag?
Combining the existing tax breaks with the new ones is projected to cost $3.8 trillion over the decade, according to the CBO’s analysis of the House bill, with the Senate draft slightly higher.
The spending cuts are estimated to total at least $1.5 trillion.
The CBO predicts that the House’s package would add $2.4 trillion to the nation’s deficits over the decade.
However, there are differing interpretations of the numbers, depending on the calculation method.
Senate Republicans are advocating for a distinctive approach of not categorizing the existing tax breaks as a new cost because they are considered “current policy.” They argue that the Budget Committee chairman has the authority to establish the baseline for their preferred methodology.
According to the congressional Joint Committee on Taxation, under the Senate GOP’s perspective, the cost of tax provisions would amount to $441 billion.
Opponents, including Democrats, argue that this approach is misleading and hides the true costs of the GOP tax breaks. The Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget estimates the Senate’s total at $4.2 trillion over the decade.
“Current policy baseline” is criticized as a budgetary maneuver by Sen. Jeff Merkley, the top Democrat on the Budget Committee. “This bill will add trillions upon trillions of dollars to the national debt to fund tax breaks for billionaires.”
As Trump heads to Europe for a NATO meeting, he has urged senators to lock themselves in a room if necessary and “GET THE BILL DONE.”
Associated Press writers Darlene Superville and Mary Clare Jalonick contributed to this report.
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