The United States Congress has successfully passed President Donald Trump’s sweeping budget bill, a major legislative victory that paves the way for its signing into law on July 4th. This sprawling package, central to Mr. Trump’s policy agenda, underwent days of intense debate and overnight sessions in both the House of Representatives and the Senate before securing passage.

The legislative process was marked by significant opposition, particularly from Democrats. In a dramatic moment, the final vote in the House was delayed by Democratic Minority House Leader Hakeem Jeffries, who set a new record by speaking for over eight hours on the House floor. His marathon speech underscored fierce Democratic opposition, arguing that key provisions of the bill would disproportionately benefit the wealthy and widen inequality. Mr. Jeffries stated, “This is not just about numbers on a spreadsheet. This is about the lives of ordinary Americans who will feel the impact of these choices for generations to come.” Despite these concerns, the bill garnered enough support, passing the House in a 218-214 vote and the Senate in a narrow 51-50 vote, where Vice President JD Vance cast the tie-breaking vote. Republican lawmakers, conversely, hailed the bill as a necessary step to stimulate economic growth and restore fiscal discipline, with President Trump calling it “a tremendous win for the American people” that would “turbocharge the economy, create jobs, and strengthen America’s future.”

At the core of the 887-page legislation is an extension of Trump’s 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, making most of the tax cuts permanent, which were otherwise slated to sunset at the end of the year. The bill also includes significant increases in spending for several key areas. It allocates over $46.5 billion for border wall construction and related expenses, $45 billion to expand detention capacity for immigrants in custody, and approximately $30 billion for hiring, training, and other resources for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). Additionally, it increases spending for defense and energy production.

However, the bill is partially paid for by substantial cuts to critical health care and nutrition programs. Notably, it includes restrictions on Medicaid, which provides government-sponsored health care for low-income and disabled Americans. These restrictions impose work requirements for some able-bodied adults and more frequent eligibility checks. The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) estimates that these changes could result in 11.8 million Americans losing health coverage under Medicaid over the next decade. The bill also shifts the costs of the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Programme (SNAP), or food stamps, to some states, a program currently fully funded by the federal government. Despite these cuts, a rural hospital stabilization fund, allocating $50 billion over the next decade, was included after some GOP senators expressed concern over the potential impact on rural hospitals.

Other key provisions include an increase to the cap on the state and local tax (SALT) deduction, raising it from $10,000 to $40,000 for five years, after which it would revert to $10,000. Conversely, the bill largely terminates numerous tax incentives from the 2022 Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) for clean energy, electric vehicles (EVs), and energy efficiency programs. This includes ending tax credits for new and used electric vehicles, installation of home EV charging equipment, and insulation or energy-efficient heating and cooling systems. The Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund, which finances projects reducing pollution and greenhouse gas emissions, is also ended, though existing contracts and grants remain unaffected. Furthermore, the legislation raises the national debt ceiling by $5 trillion, exceeding initial proposals.

The CBO projects that this bill would add $3.4 trillion to federal deficits over the next 10 years, forecasts disputed by Republicans and the White House. Democrats hope that public opposition to the bill, which they argue represents a huge redistribution of wealth from the poorest Americans to the richest, will help them in future elections. President Trump welcomed the outcome, expressing confidence in the law's ability to boost the economy. The signing ceremony on July 4th is expected to be a pomp-laden event at the White House, coinciding with America's Independence Day, featuring fireworks and a flypast by B-2 stealth bombers, with pilots from a recent Iran bombing mission invited to attend. This legislative success marks another significant political win for Trump, solidifying his dominance over the Republican Party and U.S. politics, despite deep misgivings from within his own party and prominent figures like Elon Musk regarding the bill’s potential to balloon the national debt and significantly cut health and welfare support.