President Donald Trump has signed his “Big, Beautiful Bill” into law.
The bill passed 218-214 in the House of Representatives on Thursday, with every Democrat and two Republicans voting against it. The Senate passed it 51-50 earlier this week following a tie-breaking vote from Vice President JD Vance.
The bill signing was blurred with an Independence Day celebration — the Military Family Picnic — on the White House’s South Lawn. The 887-page bill provides sweeping tax cuts while curbing access to Medicaid and food access programs for millions of Americans. The legislation also provides billions more for defense and immigration enforcement.
Trump signed the bill surrounded by allies. House Speaker Mike Johnson gifted him the gavel he used to announce the bill’s passage in the House.
With First Lady Melania Trump by his side, the president spoke to the crowd at the picnic as he prepared to sign the bill, claiming it will put the country on “a rocket ship economically.”
“We’re going to make official the greatest victory yet, when I sign the ‘One Big, Beautiful Bill,’” Trump said.
“What we’ve done is put everything into one bill. It’s never happened before. It’s the biggest bill of its type in history,” he added.
The bill faced opposition from both sides of the aisle before it was narrowly passed. Despite initial holdouts by several GOP members, Representatives Thomas Massie and Brian Fitzpatrick were the only two Republicans who voted against it. Massie cited concerns about increasing the national debt, while Fitzpatrick said he was not in favor of cuts to Medicaid.
Democrats also railed against the bill, citing the cuts to assistance programs that help low-income families. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries even broke the chamber’s record for the longest floor speech as he sought to delay the bill’s passage.
Trump slammed Democrats for voting against the bill, accusing the lawmakers of either hating him or the U.S.
“The Democrats, they should have voted for it. They didn’t vote for tax cuts, they didn’t vote for taking care of people, they didn’t vote, not one vote,” he added. “And we knew that, because the hatred of either the country, or me, or both, is so great they didn’t vote at all, and it’s terrible.”
Trump thanked several allies as he spoke at the White House on Friday, including Vance, Johnson, Senate Majority Leader John Thune and House Majority Leader Steve Scalise. He went on to tell the crowd about meeting Scalise’s wife while the lawmaker had a medical scare.
“I’ve seen a lot of wives, they don’t seem to be so concerned in those situations,” Trump said. “That’s the kind of wife you don’t want. But you have a great, beautiful wife who was really there.”
Trump thanked his wife as his remarks came to an end:
“First Lady, I want to thank you,” he said. “You have been unbelievable.”
This is a breaking news story. Check back for updates.
