Early-morning negotiations proved enough to persuade hardline House conservatives to back bill in 218-214 vote
The US House of Representatives passed Donald Trump’s sweeping tax and spending bill on Thursday, handing the president the first major legislative victory of his second term and sending to his desk wide-ranging legislation expected to supercharge immigration enforcement and slash federal safety net programs.
The 218-214 vote came after weeks of wrangling over the measure that Trump demanded be ready for his signature by Friday, the Independence Day holiday. Written by his Republican allies in Congress and unanimously rejected by Democrats, the bill traveled an uncertain road to passage that saw multiple all-night votes in the House and Senate and negotiations that lasted until the final hours before passage. Ultimately, Republicans who had objected to its cost and contents folded, and the bill passed with just two GOP defections: Thomas Massie, a rightwing Kentucky lawmaker, and Brian Fitzpatrick, who represents a Pennsylvania district that voted for Kamala Harris in last year’s election.
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© Photograph: Graeme Sloan/EPA
© Photograph: Graeme Sloan/EPA
In a vote of 218-214, Republicans passed Trump’s megabill, sending it to the president’s desk by his self-imposed Independence Day deadline
Jeffries has just passed the five-hour mark and has no intention of stopping: “We still got some ground to cover.”
“We are going to continue as Democrats to take our sweet time on behalf of the American people because the issues are too significant to ever walk away from,” Jeffries said, to cheers from the Democrats in the chamber.
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© Photograph: Alex Wroblewski/AFP/Getty Images
© Photograph: Alex Wroblewski/AFP/Getty Images
Speaker struggles to muster enough Republican votes as lawmakers object to provisions and cost
Donald Trump’s signature tax-and-spending bill is hanging in the balance as Republicans struggle to muster sufficient votes in the US House of Representatives.
House speaker Mike Johnson is determined to pass the bill as soon as possible, but has been frustrated by lawmakers who object to its provisions and overall cost. They have blocked House Republicans from approving a rule, which is necessary to begin debate on the measure and set the stage for its passage.
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© Photograph: Annabelle Gordon/Reuters
© Photograph: Annabelle Gordon/Reuters
Only four Republicans need to side with Democrats to block legislation
Donald Trump on Tuesday toured “Alligator Alcatraz”, a controversial new migrant detention jail in the remote Florida Everglades, and celebrated the harsh conditions that people sent there would experience.
The president was chaperoned by Florida’s hard-right governor, Ron DeSantis, who hailed the tented camp on mosquito-infested land 50 miles west of Miami as an example for other states that supported Trump’s mass deportation agenda.
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© Photograph: Will Oliver/EPA
© Photograph: Will Oliver/EPA
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