US House Narrowly Passes Trump’s Sweeping Tax and Spending Bill

In a tense late-night session that stretched into the early hours of Thursday, the United States House of Representatives narrowly passed a massive tax and spending bill championed by President Donald Trump. The legislation, formally known as the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, passed by a vote of 218 to 214 and is now heading to Trump’s desk for his signature on July 4.

The bill represents the most significant legislative victory of Trump’s second term. It cements many of his priorities, including making permanent the tax cuts Congress first passed in 2017, sharply increasing defense spending, and imposing strict new limits on clean energy incentives tied to China.

The legislation did not come without fierce opposition. Every House Democrat voted against it, joined by two Republican Representatives, Brian Fitzpatrick of Pennsylvania and Thomas Massie of Kentucky. Many lawmakers raised alarms over deep cuts to Medicaid, the healthcare program that supports about 70 million Americans, and a projected $3 trillion increase in the federal deficit over the next decade.

Despite the backlash, Trump and House Speaker Mike Johnson worked late into the night to pressure holdouts in the Republican ranks. Trump took to social media, calling the delays “RIDICULOUS!!!” in a flurry of posts that underscored the urgency of the vote.

In the Senate, the bill had passed earlier in the week by the slimmest possible margin, 51 to 50, after Vice-President James David Vance cast the deciding vote. The House vote was delayed by nearly nine hours after House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries delivered a record-setting speech condemning the bill as harmful to working families and the nation’s clean energy future.

The final package is sweeping in scope. It includes nearly $150 billion in new defense funding, with billions allocated for naval vessels to counter China’s growing influence in the Pacific and to develop a space-based missile defense system dubbed the “Golden Dome.”

On the energy front, the bill restricts clean energy tax credits if a Chinese company owns more than 25% of a project or if too much Chinese material is used. This could affect over 100 battery and solar plants already operating or planned in the United States.

Additionally, the legislation ends the “de minimis” rule, which has allowed small shipments to avoid tariffs and inspections. Critics warn this will disrupt millions of low-value packages flowing into the country.

Democrats called the bill a betrayal of vulnerable Americans. Representative Marilyn Strickland accused Republicans of stripping healthcare from millions and risking thousands of clean energy jobs to appease Trump.

While the bill gives Trump a powerful talking point ahead of elections, proof that he delivered on tax cuts, defense, and trade, some analysts say its long-term consequences could become a liability if Medicaid cuts and higher deficits hit Americans hard in the years to come.

Trump plans to sign the legislation on Independence Day, with military aircraft flying overhead to mark what he has called “the biggest bill ever signed.”