US President Donald Trump signed the sweeping ‘Big Beautiful Bill,’ a multitrillion-dollar tax and spending package, into law during a high-profile ceremony at the White House. The bill’s enactment is expected to increase the federal debt by $3.3 trillion over the next decade. The legislation, dubbed the ‘Big Beautiful Bill,’ marks a significant step in Trump’s economic policy, extending the 2017 tax cuts and introducing new provisions that temporarily reduce taxes on tips, overtime pay, and social security. However, the bill also includes cuts to key programs like Medicaid, food assistance, and clean-energy subsidies, which are projected to impact 12 million Americans by 2034. The signing ceremony was marked by a dramatic flyover of American aircraft used in recent bombing raids on Iran, highlighting the intersection of military and economic priorities in Trump’s agenda.
The ceremony followed a narrow vote in the US House of Representatives, which passed the legislation just a day earlier. The nearly 900-page bill extends the 2017 tax cuts from Trump’s first term and temporarily reduces taxes on tips and overtime pay. It also allocates hundreds of billions of dollars in new spending for the president’s border and national security agenda, including funds for the US-Mexico border wall and large-scale migrant deportations. To partially offset the costs, the bill imposes steep cuts to Medicaid, food assistance, and clean-energy subsidies. According to Congressional Budget Office (CBO) estimates, nearly 12 million Americans will lose Medicaid coverage by 2034, while around 3 million will lose eligibility for food stamps, also known as SNAP benefits.
The CBO further projects that the legislation will raise the national debt by $3.3 trillion over the next decade, as it incurs revenue losses totaling $4.5 trillion while only generating $1.2 trillion in spending cuts. It also includes a provision to raise the national debt ceiling by $5 trillion, thus allowing for further federal borrowing. Thursday’s House vote, just one day before Trump’s July 4 deadline, followed a tense 24-hour period of internal GOP negotiations. Republican holdouts initially blocked a procedural vote on Wednesday, prompting Trump to personally call lawmakers into the early hours of Thursday to secure support. Only two Republicans, Representatives Thomas Massie of Kentucky and Brian Fitzpatrick of Pennsylvania, ultimately voted against the bill.