On Friday, July 4, US President Donald Trump signed into law the One Big Beautiful Bill, a major budget bill. “America is winning, winning, winning like never before,” declared Donald Trump at the White House, before affixing his imposing signature, surrounded by Republican lawmakers.
The date was not anodyne, of course, since it was Independence Day. Donald Trump had in fact pushed for the law to be passed on the 249ᵉ anniversary of the United States’ independence from the British crown. For the occasion, two B-2 bombers — the model of aircraft used in the bombing of Iranian nuclear facilities on June 22 — and fighter jets flew over the White House. Some of the pilots who took part in the operation were also present. The ceremony ended in the evening with the traditional fireworks display on the National Mall, watched by the President and First Lady Melania Trump.
Voting proved to be very close
Described by the American president as his greatest victory in office, the One Big Beautiful Bill is far from unanimous, even within his own political family. Some Republicans, his former ally Elon Musk, and the Democrats as a whole expressed fears that the bill would increase the national debt, and criticized the cuts to health and welfare. Nevertheless, the bill passed the Senate on the wire on July 1, with 51 votes in favor and 50 against. It was then narrowly approved by the House of Representatives on July 3, with 218 votes in favor and 214 against. While all Democrats voted expectedly against, only two Republicans — Thomas Massie of Kentucky and Brian Fitzpatrick of Pennsylvania — ultimately voted against. In the end, the Republican group largely lined up behind the leader despite internal reservations.
A major project that marks a political and economic turning point
So what does this law contain? Well, quite a lot! With no less than 900 pages of text, the media have described it as “sprawling”. Among other things, this law provides for the permanent extension of the tax cuts stemming from the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017, during Donald Trump’s first term in office, which were due to expire at the end of 2025 . They particularly benefit wealthier households and companies.
The law also provides for new temporary exemptions on tips, overtime, car loans and the creation of tax-free savings accounts for children, “Trump Accounts”, until 2028. It increases the deduction limit for state and local taxes (SALT): from $10,000 to $40,000 for certain taxpayers, with a time limit of five years.
The One Big Beautiful Bill also calls for drastic cuts to Medicaid — 12% of spending, the deepest cuts ever imposed on the program — and to the SNAP food assistance program, with new, stricter eligibility requirements, including work obligations for recipients.
On the other hand, the bill provides for an increase in security spending, with between $150 and $165 billion earmarked for defense, border security and the vast campaign to arrest and deport illegal immigrants conducted by The United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). Lastly, the law provides for the phasing out of most of the tax incentives introduced by the Biden administration’s Inflation Reduction Act, such as tax credits for low-carbon electricity, subsidies for the purchase of electric vehicles, and support for domestic production of batteries and solar panels.
A law in Trump’s image that raises fear
The Congressional Budget Office (CBO), an independent federal agency responsible for evaluating government spending, has estimated that the One Big Beautiful Bill Act is likely to result in the loss of health coverage for around 11 million Americans. It could also lead to the closure of several rural hospitals. Nebraska Community Hospital has already announced the closure of a clinic in the rural town of Curtis, which serves 900 people locally, following the law’s enactment. In addition, according to the Center for a Responsible Federal Budget, this law would accelerate the expected date of Social Security and Medicare insolvency by one year.
« This is among the darkest days in the history of US health care. People will suffer and die because of the cuts in this legislation to fund tax cuts for billionaires — certainly in the short term and potentially for decades to come if nothing is done”, reacted the National Nurses United (NNU), the country’s largest nurses’ union.
The CBO also assessed that the law would add $2.4 trillion to the US national debt by 2034, and raised the estimated increase in the budget deficit to $2.8 trillion. Finally, the CBO projected that the incomes of the lowest 10% of households would fall by 2% in 2027 and 4% in 2033 as a result of the bill’s changes. On the other hand, the wealthiest 10% of households would see their incomes increase as a result of the legislation: 4% in 2027 and 2% in 2033.
Prior to its enactment, the New York Times described the bill as a major obstacle to renewable energy development and research in the US, believing that it could cause the US to lose its lead in the clean energy race to China. It was also pointed out that by favoring fossil fuel companies over sectors such as solar, wind or electric vehicles, many factories could close, investors could turn away from clean energy and many people could lose their jobs.
The One Big Beautiful Bill Act is the very embodiment of Donald Trump’s policies on all fronts: political, economic, social, security and ecological. The American president is accused of favoring the rich and corporations at the expense of the poor, pursuing his anti-immigration policy deemed arbitrary and having led to a nationwide wave of protests last June, fueling the climate crisis and depriving Americans of social protections. Thus, for its expected economic and social consequences, this law is not only controversial, but also feared by part of the political class and many Americans.
