Durbin, Duckworth slam Trump's 'big beautiful bill' after Senate passage
CHICAGO - Illinois Senators Dick Durbin and Tammy Duckworth sharply criticized President Donald Trump’s "big beautiful bill" on Tuesday after it passed the Senate with a tie-breaking vote from Vice President JD Vance.
Durbin statement
"Let’s make one thing clear – there is nothing ‘beautiful’ about slashing health care coverage for 17 million Americans all so President Trump can deliver a shiny tax cut to the wealthiest individuals and corporations. To make matters worse, Senate Republicans voted to close rural hospitals and take food off the table of millions of Americans, including children, seniors, and veterans, to pay for this outrageous giveaway.
"My Republican colleagues will now have to explain to their constituents why they chose to rip away health insurance from families so that millionaires and billionaires can enjoy a hefty tax break."
Duckworth statement
"By passing this monstrosity of a bill, Donald Trump and Republicans are proving they are intent on becoming the party of ‘well, we’re all going to die.’
"This Big, Beautiful Betrayal does not make America stronger, better or safer. It lights trillions of taxpayer dollars on fire to explode our debt and line the pockets of Donald Trump, his family and his billionaire friends. More than half a million Illinoisans will lose health coverage and hospitals, health clinics and nursing homes across the country will shut down. Adding insult to injury, the legion of middle-class and working-class Americans who lose their livelihoods will be unable to receive safety net support precisely because of the Republicans who voted for this awful legislation that killed their jobs.
"There is nothing beautiful about this catastrophe of a bill—it is fiscally and morally irresponsible. It’s downright shameful that by voting for this bill, Republicans are once again showing they would rather hurt middle-class families and our neighbors who are most in need than make the wealthy pay their fair share or show any backbone in the face of Donald Trump’s desire to enrich himself and his family."
Sen. Dick Durbin and Sen. Tammy Duckworth | Getty Images
Raja Krishnamoorthi statement
"Senate Republicans just rammed through a budget bill that guts our social safety net and slashes over $1 trillion from Medicaid—all to bankroll massive tax cuts for the ultra-wealthy. Millions will lose health care, families will go hungry, and the ultra-wealthy will cash in. This isn’t fiscal responsibility—it’s moral failure. I’ll fight this cruel betrayal of working Americans every step of the way."
The backstory:
President Trump’s "big beautiful bill" passed the Senate Tuesday after more than 24 hours of voting.
Many Republicans in Congress were racing to meet Trump’s Fourth of July deadline to pass the bill, while the Democrats in the minority were united in opposition and ready to challenge it.
But the outcome was never guaranteed, as the bill lacked support from even some GOP Senators and barely passed a procedural vote over the weekend.
By the numbers:
Vice President JD Vance broke a 50-50 tie on Tuesday to secure the win.
What's next:
The bill returns to the House for a new vote, which it must pass before Trump can sign it into law.
GOP Senators who opposed Trump’s bill
- Sen. Thom Tillis of North Carolina
- Sen. Susan Collins of Maine
- Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky
What’s in the new ‘big, beautiful’ bill?
In short:
The 940-page "One Big Beautiful Bill Act," as it is now formally titled, cuts spending on Medicaid, food stamps and other programs as a way to help cover the cost of extending some $4.5 trillion in tax cuts.
Big picture view:
The legislation would make permanent many of the tax breaks and tax brackets from Trump's first term that would otherwise expire by year's end if Congress fails to act, resulting in a potential tax increase on Americans. The bill would temporarily add new breaks, including no taxes on tips, overtime pay, the ability to deduce interest payments for some car loans, along with a $6,000 deduction for older adults who earn no more than $75,000 a year.
Aside from tax breaks, the bill would commit $350 billion to national security, including for Trump's mass deportation agenda, a border wall and the Golden Dome.
To pay for the above, it proposes $1.2 trillion in cuts, largely to Medicaid and food stamps, by imposing work requirements, making sign-up eligibility more stringent and changing federal reimbursements to states.
Medicaid and food stamps:
The package includes new 80-hour-a-month work requirements for many adults receiving Medicaid and food stamps, including older people up to age 65. Parents of children 14 and older would have to meet the program’s work requirements.
There's also a proposed new $35 co-payment that can be charged to patients using Medicaid services.
Big, beautiful bill threatens vital funding for some Chicago hospitals
Leaders at Loretto Hospital say the proposed bill could force them to shut down—leaving thousands on Chicago’s West Side without essential care.
More changes:
There are scores of business-related tax cuts, including allowing businesses to immediately write off 100% of the cost of equipment and research.
A tax break for people who buy new or used electric vehicles would expire on Sept. 30 of this year, instead of at the end of 2032 under current law.
The Senate provided $40 million to establish Trump’s long-sought "National Garden of American Heroes" near Mount Rushmore.
There's a new excise tax on university endowments. A $200 tax on gun silencers and short-barreled rifles and shotguns was eliminated. One provision bars money to family planning providers, namely Planned Parenthood, while $88 million is earmarked for a pandemic response accountability committee.
The Source: The information in this article was obtained from Sen. Dick Durbin, Sen. Tammy Duckworth, The Associated Press, and previous FOX 32 reporting.