The House of Representatives is barreling toward a final vote on President Trump’s “Big Beautiful Bill,” with Republicans increasingly likely to send a massive piece of legislation that will be felt across the economy for years to come to the president’s desk.
Approval is far assured but White House and Republican leaders inched closer to victory Thursday morning after a pressure campaign and yet another all-night session on Capitol Hill appeared to satisfy Republican holdouts concerned about things like the multi-trillion dollar price tag and health care cuts.
House Speaker Mike Johnson predicted to reporters that a final vote would come at around 8 a.m. ET, but the timing could be flexible. Legislators are racing to give the president a signature political victory by approving the bill before his self-imposed July 4 deadline.
“We have the votes,” Johnson added as he pushed through final negotiations at about 3 a.m. ET.
Johnson then secured a procedural victory as the House voted 219-213 at about 3:30 a.m. to begin formal debate on the measure with only one Republican — Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick of Pennsylvania — voting no.
Read more: Taxes, energy, and healthcare: 3 ways Senate’s Trump megabill impacts the business world
What appears to have moved many of these recalcitrant lawmakers into the yes column was not any changes to the bill itself — this morning’s vote is set to include zero changes to the 870-page bill that passed the Senate earlier this week — but with promises of things like executive actions to address their concerns.
As for Trump, the final vote couldn’t come soon enough with the president posting at about midnight “What are the Republicans waiting for???”
Major changes — and a giant price tag
The early morning back and forth was just the latest twist in days of negotiations over a reconciliation package set to reshape wide swathes of the US economy — especially in areas of taxes, energy, and healthcare.
The package also include a $5 trillion debt ceiling increase and is projected to unleash a wave of new borrowing that will lead the US national debt to surpass $40 trillion in the coming years.
Economists have likewise noted the final price tag, which could lead to $4 trillion in new debt, and critiqued an accounting gimmick Republicans employed to hide much of that red ink.
It’s a bill also set to be felt keenly in American pocketbooks with provisions that include new credits like no taxes on some tips, cuts to student loans and the Pell Grant program, an increase in state tax deductions, and even so-called MAGA accounts for young children.
The process proved exceptionally contentious in recent days, largely over the healthcare provisions that are set to extract hundreds of billions in government savings but cause millions to lose their coverage.
Clean energy was another key last minute flashpoint with Tesla (TSLA) CEO Elon Musk perhaps the loudest voice in opposition there.
That portion of the bill saw provisions being added and subtracted in rapid succession during the Senate debate (which sent solar stocks gyrating).
The final product didn’t include at least one of the harshest ideas but is nevertheless set to have the US government move away from any significant role in renewable energy in the years ahead. A first step there will be felt quickly with a plan to eliminate electric vehicle credits on September 30 of this year.
Democrats for their part are promising to make the bill a political albatross for Republicans and talk nonstop about the packages between now and next year’s midterm election.
In particular focus are the healthcare provisions that — according to an accounting from the Congressional Budget Office that came in over the weekend — could cause 11.8 million additional Americans to become uninsured by 2034.
The combination of provisions that led to deep opposition from Democrats but also harsh words from Republicans even hours before the final votes.
In just one example, GOP Rep. Keith Self of Texas posted Wednesday night that the bill was “morally and fiscally bankrupt” before voting early Thursday morning to proceed to a final vote.
Ben Werschkul is a Washington correspondent for Yahoo Finance.
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