Donald Trump's 'Big, beautiful bill' passed by Senate Republicans as Vance steps in

Senate Republicans have passed President Donald Trump’s 'Big, Beautiful bill' after a dramatic scramble to win over key holdouts.

The vote was 50-50, with Vice President JD Vance casting the tie-breaking vote. The three Republicans opposing the bill were Sens. Thom Tillis of North Carolina, Susan Collins of Maine, and Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky. Sen. Lisa Murkowski of Alaska ultimately switched her vote to “yes,” allowing the bill to pass.

The outcome capped an unusually tense weekend of work at the Capitol, the president’s signature legislative priority teetering on the edge of approval, or collapse.

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Tensions were high on the Democratic side of the aisle during Tuesday’s final vote on the big tax and spending cut bill. Several yelled their “No” as the roll call ensued. Others filtered out almost immediately and before a final tally could be announced.

The difficulty Republicans, who hold the majority in Congress, have faced in passing the bill to this point is not expected to let up as it returns to the House before it can reach the president’s desk. Trump has set a self-imposed July 4 deadline for the bill.

Sen. Angus King, an independent from Maine, walked over to the Republican side of the chamber upon exiting and could be heard from the gallery admonishing GOP colleagues: “Shame on you guys,” he said in a loud voice.

In response to Senate Republicans passing their devastating budget, DNC Chair Ken Martin stated, “Donald Trump and Senate Republicans have sent a clear message to the American people: Your kids, your job, and your elderly relatives don’t matter. This is one of the worst bills in the history of Congress. It’s a massive scheme to steal from working folks, struggling families, and hell, even from nursing homes — all to enrich the already rich with a tax giveaway."

"The families who will be devastated by this billionaire budget scam aren’t just numbers, they are constituents that Republicans promised to represent — 17 million Americans who will lose their health care and more than 5 million Americans who will be at risk of losing their food assistance. I know firsthand how devastating this will be, because I grew up in a family that only made it because of these lifelines. Billionaires don’t need more help, working families do. Democrats will stand shoulder to shoulder with working families to kick these Republicans out of their seats in 2026," finished the statement from Martin.

The changes made to President Donald Trump’s big tax bill in the Senate would pile trillions onto the nation’s debt load while resulting in even steeper losses in health care coverage, the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office said in a new analysis, adding to the challenges for Republicans as they try to muscle the bill to passage.

The CBO estimates the Senate bill would increase the deficit by nearly $3.3 trillion from 2025 to 2034, a nearly $1 trillion increase over the House-passed bill, which CBO has projected would add $2.4 to the debt over a decade.

The analysis also found that 11.8 million more Americans would become uninsured by 2034 if the bill became law, an increase over the scoring for the House-passed version of the bill, which predicts 10.9 million more people would be without health coverage.

Even before the CBO’s estimate, Republicans were at odds over the contours of the legislation, with some resisting the cost-saving proposals to reduce spending on Medicaid and food aid programs even as other Republicans say those proposals don’t go far enough. Republicans are slashing the programs as a way to help cover the cost of extending some $3.8 trillion in Trump tax breaks put in place during his first term.