WASHINGTON, D.C. — The U.S. Senate on Tuesday passed the Republicans’ cornerstone legislation to preserve tax cuts, boost military and border security spending, change safety-net social programs and provide incentives for the oil, gas and coal industries.
It would also raise the debt ceiling by $5 trillion.
Called the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer of New York used a procedural tactic to strip the bill of its title, meaning it’s no longer “beautiful.” It’s now simply called The Act.
At about 10 a.m. Wyoming time, Vice President JD Vance cast the pivotal vote to break a 50-50 Senate deadlock.
The three Senate Republicans who voted with all the Democrats were Susan Collins of Maine, Rand Paul of Kentucky and Thom Tillis of North Carolina.
The vote came after back-to-back all-night sessions that began Saturday and totaled more than 60 hours.
Lummis: Right Direction
“While this bill certainly isn’t perfect, it’s a major step in the right direction that further unlocks Wyoming energy and delivers significant wins for working families across Wyoming,” U.S. Sen. Cynthia Lummis, R-Wyoming, said in a statement.
She said it will help eliminate “waste and fraud in programs like Medicaid and SNAP,” the latter a nutrition program.
Democrats had argued the legislation went too far on these programs and will hurt eligible recipients.
She also said the bill would help end former President Joe Biden’s “green energy scams.”
Democrats had contended the legislation was tilted too far toward fossil fuels and unfairly penalized wind and solar power.
Heavy Lift For Barrasso
Things were tough for U.S. Senate Republican Whip John Barrasso of Wyoming, the second ranking Republican in the Senate, but in the end he got the job done.
“I worked to secure major wins for Wyoming,” he said in a statement. “Our bill makes significant investments in rural health care and the development of life-saving cures. We cut taxes for Wyoming families, workers and small businesses. We expand the child tax credit. We unleash affordable, available, reliable Wyoming energy.
“Senate Republicans kept our promises to the American people. We voted to put more money in people’s pockets, to make our communities safer, and to stop the largest tax increase in history.”
Democrats argued the tax treatment in the bill skews too much in favor of corporations and wealthy people.
The bill now goes to the House, which passed its version in May by a single vote, 215-214. The Senate’s version is much different, and the two chambers will need to resolve those differences before it can go to President Donald Trump’s desk.
In the end, both chambers must agree on identical language to send the bill to the president.
Beginning in early June, senators spent weeks drafting and redrafting language. The parliamentarian had issued rulings — albeit nonbinding — that some provisions strayed too far from budget-making to be included under the rules of moving the bill on a simple majority vote. Most legislation requires a 60-vote threshold.
Senate Republicans took the bill to the floor Saturday at noon Wyoming time and remained in session for 35 hours, 14 minutes.
They took it up again Monday morning and passed the bill about 27 hours later. That period was the consideration of floor amendments, known as “vote-a-rama.”
Sean Barry can be reached at sean@cowboystatedaily.com.
