Trump’s Big, Beautiful bill passes the House

The House approved President Trump’s “big, beautiful bill” on Thursday, paving the way for him to sign it by his July 4 deadline — a major win for Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.), who successfully flipped dozens of initially reluctant Republicans, delivering a hard-fought victory for both Trump and Senate Republicans.

The bill passed narrowly, 218-214, with only Reps. Thomas Massie (Ky.) and Brian Fitzpatrick (Pa.) breaking ranks to join all Democrats in opposition. Despite demands from moderates and conservatives for changes after the Senate revised the House version, no adjustments were made.

Several key holdouts reversed their stance following meetings with Trump at the White House, though a small group of hardliners required further persuasion. Johnson and GOP leaders were seen shuttling in and out of a room near the House floor where Freedom Caucus members had gathered for late-night negotiations. Trump was directly engaged throughout, with lawmakers seeking his assurances on what lies ahead. The House had narrowly passed its own version back in May, backed by leadership’s promise of future improvements.

In a dramatic show of last-minute vote wrangling, GOP leaders held a procedural vote open for over seven hours on Wednesday — the longest in House history — as they worked to secure the final “yes” votes, while another vote to open debate stretched nearly six hours. Ultimately, the House floor stalled overnight before a rule resolution outlining debate terms was adopted around 3:30 a.m. Thursday, with only Fitzpatrick joining Democrats in opposing it.