US President Donald Trump's marquee tax and spending legislation, dubbed the “One Big Beautiful Bill”, was teetering on the brink of collapse early on Thursday as Republican leaders struggled to corral a growing rebellion within their ranks.
The House of Representatives had yet to give final approval to the Senate-passed version of the bill, which includes sweeping tax cuts, massive increases in defence spending, and unprecedented reductions in social safety net programmes.
But the legislation, which embodies many of Trump’s core campaign promises, now faces mounting resistance from both fiscal conservatives and moderate Republicans.
By midnight, Speaker Mike Johnson was still holding open a critical procedural vote — the last step before the bill could move to final passage — more than two hours after it was first called. Behind the scenes, party leaders were locked in frantic negotiations with GOP holdouts.
“We’re going to get there tonight. We’re working on it and very, very positive about our progress,” Johnson told reporters, according to Politico.
High stakes, deep divisions
Originally passed by the House in May, the 887-page legislation returned to the lower chamber after scraping through the Senate on Tuesday by a single vote.
Changes made in the Senate moved the bill further right, causing fractures to widen in the House GOP caucus.
The package commits $4.5 trillion to extend Trump’s tax cuts, funds a large-scale immigration crackdown, and boosts defence spending, all while adding an estimated $3.4 trillion to the national debt over the next decade.
To offset the cost, the bill includes what analysts describe as the most drastic cuts to Medicaid since its inception, prompting warnings that up to 17 million Americans could lose health coverage.
Moderate Republicans, particularly those facing tough reelection fights, fear political fallout from slashing healthcare and welfare programs. Meanwhile, fiscal hawks argue that promised savings fall short by hundreds of billions, despite the steep social cuts.
House rules require multiple preliminary votes before final passage, and early warning signs emerged when a routine procedural vote, typically lasting minutes, dragged on for over seven hours, breaking records for the longest vote in House history.
Trump applies pressure, Democrats ready for 2026
Trump, eager to score a legislative win before the July 4 deadline he set, took matters into his own hands. He summoned wavering Republicans to a closed-door meeting at the White House and issued a late-night broadside on his Truth Social platform.
“What are the Republicans waiting for?” he wrote. “What are you trying to prove??? MAGA IS NOT HAPPY, AND IT'S COSTING YOU VOTES!!!”
While Republicans face internal discord, Democrats are united in their opposition.
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries labelled the bill a “disgusting abomination,” accusing the GOP of orchestrating a historic redistribution of wealth from the poor to the wealthy.
With House Republicans hanging by a thread, the bill’s fate remains uncertain. But one thing is clear: Trump’s “One Big Beautiful Bill” has become one big political flashpoint in a deeply fractured party.
