Trump's mega budget bill passes

Donald Trump won the first major legislative victory of his second term on Thursday after Congress forced through a major budget bill that enacted tax cuts and cuts to social security for Americans.

After the Senate narrowly approved it on Tuesday, the House of Representatives finally adopted this 869-page text, dubbed a "great and beautiful law" by the president himself, in a very close vote on Thursday, preceded by multiple pressures and negotiations. "VICTORY," the White House immediately reacted in a message on X. Donald Trump will sign this text, the keystone of his economic program, on Friday, the American Independence Day.

"This bill brings together all the policies the president campaigned on and the American people voted for on November 5th," White House spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt told reporters, calling it "a bridge to America's golden age." This "One Big Beautiful Bill" includes the extension of colossal tax credits passed during the Republican's first term, the elimination of the tip tax, a key promise of his campaign, as well as billions of additional dollars for defense and the fight against immigration.

To partially offset the widening deficit, Republicans have enacted massive cuts to Medicaid, the public health insurance program on which millions of low-income Americans rely. A drastic reduction in the country's main food assistance program is also planned, as is the elimination of many tax incentives for renewable energy adopted under Joe Biden.

To denounce this "repugnant monstrosity" that "will cause ordinary Americans to suffer," Democratic House leader Hakeem Jeffries delivered a nearly nine-hour speech on Thursday—a record in the House of Representatives—in an effort to delay the final vote as long as possible. After the vote was won by 218 votes to 214, lawmakers chanted "USA, USA, USA!" in the chamber. Only two members of the conservative majority ultimately voted "against" it, a result of the maximum pressure exerted by Republican Party leaders and Donald Trump himself to secure this victory.

On Wednesday evening, he raised his voice and expressed his impatience on his Truth Social network. "What are the Republicans waiting for?" he said. The head of state spoke on the phone to recalcitrant elected officials from his camp until late into the night to convince them, according to the leader of the House of Representatives, Republican Mike Johnson. Initially scheduled for Wednesday, the final vote did not take place until early Thursday afternoon in Washington. The president's party could not afford more than three defections from its own camp.

The expected explosion of the public deficit has made the passage of the law difficult for many Republicans committed to fiscal seriousness. The Congressional Budget Office, responsible for assessing the impact of bills on public finances in a nonpartisan manner, estimated Tuesday that the bill would increase the debt by more than $3.4 trillion by 2034.

"I came to Washington to help curb our national debt," said Keith Self, a Republican representative in the House, expressing his opposition to the bill—before finally falling into line and voting "yes." The bill narrowly passed the Senate on Tuesday after 26 hours of voting on dozens of amendments. Democrats, who are in the minority in both houses of Congress, were only able to delay the bill's passage.

"17 million people just lost their health insurance," denounced Democratic California Governor Gavin Newsom on X, who has emerged as a leading figure in the opposition to Donald Trump. Former Democratic President Joe Biden denounced the law as "not just irresponsible, but cruel," citing "the big tax cuts for billionaires."