U.S. Rep. Chip Roy, R-Texas, praised the House passage of the Republican- backed “One Big Beautiful Bill Act” this week, touting it as a step toward fiscal discipline even as he criticized its rushed process and lingering provisions.
The sweeping legislation, which cleared the House by a single vote, now heads to the Senate, where Republican leaders face a narrow path to passage ahead of President Donald Trump’s July 4 deadline. The bill, officially titled H.R. 1, would extend 2017 tax cuts, add new breaks including exemptions for tipped income, and slash federal spending by more than $1.5 trillion over a decade.
“After much deliberation, I voted yes,” Roy said in a statement released May 27. “The good news is that the bill technically held true to the framework I pushed for—connecting any tax cuts or extensions to equal or greater spending cuts.”
Roy highlighted several conservative wins in the bill, including accelerated Medicaid work requirements, reforms to state Medicaid payments, and limits on green energy subsidies established under the Inflation Reduction Act. He also pointed to funding for state-led border enforcement efforts and changes to health savings accounts. But Roy noted “significant reservations,” blasting the legislative process and early deficit projections.
“As with most major bills in Washington, this was rushed, mashed together, and crammed through the House without sufficient time to review every item carefully,” Roy said. “We should do better.”
Roy also took aim at a $350 billion deduction for state and local taxes (SALT), which he opposes, and what he called insufficient reforms to Medicaid’s “money laundering schemes.”
Meanwhile, Trump is turning up the pressure on Senate Republicans to move quickly. The president wants the bill signed into law by Independence Day and has been personally calling lawmakers to build support.
“Passing THE ONE, BIG, BEAUTIFUL BILL is a Historic Opportunity to turn our Country around,” Trump posted Monday on social media.
Trump’s proposed package is a centerpiece of his second-term agenda. In addition to tax breaks, it would raise the debt ceiling by $4 trillion and funnel $350 billion toward border security and deportations.
But Democrats are mounting fierce opposition, warning that the spending cuts—particularly to Medicaid and SNAP benefits—would leave millions of Americans without crucial aid. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., called the bill “ugly to its very core.”
“Behind the smoke and mirrors lies a cruel and draconian truth: tax breaks for the ultra-wealthy paid for by gutting health care for millions of Americans,” Schumer said.
With a slim 53-seat Republican majority, Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., has little room for dissent. Lawmakers are reportedly negotiating changes to Medicaid work requirements, provider tax rules, and the SALT cap, as well as exploring ways to alter or trim back some of Trump’s newer tax proposals.
Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Mo., and others have raised concerns about the bill’s potential impact on health coverage, while Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., has demanded removal of the debt ceiling hike altogether.
Still, Thune insisted Tuesday that the bill—and the debt ceiling lift—must move forward.
“Failure’s not an option,” Thune said. “We’ve got to get to 51.”
The Treasury Department has warned lawmakers that without a debt limit increase by mid-July, the U.S. could default on its obligations.
Roy, who is aligned with the conservative House Freedom Caucus, said he remains open to working with the Senate to revise the package before it reaches Trump’s desk.
“This bill needs massive improvements if we are to make a dent in our deficit or to change the trajectory of this country,” he said.
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