With the passage and signing of Trump’s “Big, Beautiful Bill”, there are a couple of enormous positives.
The first is the defunding of Planned Parenthood. For decades, Republicans have controlled both houses and the Presidency at times, but never got this done. This is worthy of celebration that taxpayers are no longer funding the provision of abortions. Let’s hope it holds.
The second is the full funding of Trump’s illegal immigration efforts. The wall will be built; and there will be a much greater apparatus to detain and deport illegals.
Trump’s tax cuts from his first term were extended also.
Wikipedia has a summary of the bill’s provisions. There are many moving parts.
And there are major problems with the bill. The biggest is the fact that it does not cut spending nearly enough; and the national debt worsens. I somehow doubt that the growth the bill will spur will compensate fully for this issue. It is possible that reduced welfare spending on illegals– and requiring work for certain welfare beneficiaries– will provide more deficit relief than anticipated.
The restoration of the tax deduction for high state and local taxes in blue states is disappointing, but was a compromise that had to be made to get this passed.
Reason Magazine has a couple of good articles that explains some of this. I continue to look for articles that deal with the entire bill more comprehensively from a constitutional, conservative standpoint.
I don’t know if the bill’s two great achievements– illegal immigration control and defunding Planned Parenthood– could have been achieved if this had been broken up into multiple, smaller reconciliation bills. But if we had done this, many of the other “moving pieces” could have been better handled.
There was much controversy over the socialist Senate Parliamentarian striking many provisions from the initial House version in a very questionable fashion. Her proper role is to make sure the bill only deals with budgetary adjustments and does not fundamentally legislate policy changes.
However, interestingly, she did not strike the provision prohibiting state regulation of AI; although the Senators later fortunately voted to amend the bill and strike this particular provision.
Her skipping over the AI provision was a clarion indication that her overall contribution was corrupt. But GOP Senate Majority Leader John Thune gave her enormous freedom to alter the bill negatively– and eliminate spending reductions– to suit the partisan interests of the socialists and establishment Republicans in the Senate.
Let’s also thankful for provisions in the bill that kept Trumps first term tax cuts. Overall it is a good bill.
Yes, the tax cuts were an important feature, Fred. I think it’s probably the best single, big bill that could have been passed with the current cast of characters among the Republicans in Congress. Let’s keep our fingers crossed that somehow the deficits are remedied.