Trump’s $4.5 Trillion Tax Bill Stalls Amid GOP Revolt in Congress

President Donald Trump’s sweeping tax and spending legislation, hailed by the White House as the centerpiece of his domestic agenda, was left hanging in Congress as House Republicans struggled to secure the votes needed for final passage.

Despite clearing the Senate by a razor-thin margin earlier this week, the bill — dubbed the “One Big Beautiful Bill” — hit a major roadblock in the House late Wednesday night. Republican Speaker Mike Johnson kept the crucial procedural vote open well past midnight in a bid to sway dissenting lawmakers amid growing rebellion within GOP ranks.

The $4.5 trillion package includes massive tax relief extensions, heightened military spending, and funding for a large-scale migrant deportation initiative — key pledges from Trump’s campaign playbook. However, it also proposes unprecedented cuts to Medicaid and other safety net programs, triggering backlash from both moderates and fiscal conservatives.

Moderates voiced concern over the political fallout of gutting healthcare for millions of Americans ahead of the 2026 midterms, while deficit hawks blasted the projected $3.4 trillion increase in national debt over the next decade, accusing leadership of breaking cost-saving promises.

The revised bill returned to the House after undergoing hard-right adjustments in the Senate, losing support from one conservative senator and two moderates over concerns ranging from fiscal irresponsibility to nearly $1 trillion in healthcare cuts.

Analysts warn that up to 17 million people could lose insurance coverage, with widespread closures expected at rural hospitals.

Earlier signs of trouble emerged when an initial procedural vote — typically a formality — remained open for over seven hours, marking the longest House vote in US history.

Speaker Johnson, under intense pressure, turned to Trump to rally the holdouts. The former president personally met with hesitant Republicans and later lashed out on Truth Social, accusing dissenters of damaging the MAGA movement: “What are you trying to prove??? MAGA IS NOT HAPPY, AND IT’S COSTING YOU VOTES!!!”

Democrats, meanwhile, have seized on the bill’s controversial provisions as a key talking point for their 2026 election strategy, denouncing it as a reverse wealth transfer favoring the rich at the expense of working families.

“Shame on Senate Republicans for passing this disgusting abomination,” said House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, pledging that Democrats would fight back at the ballot box.