US Senate in Extended Debate Over Trump’s ‘Big Beautiful Bill’

The Senate engaged in an all-night session to deliberate on the massive budget package that is a cornerstone of President Trump’s agenda.

Nicknamed the One Big Beautiful Bill Act and spanning nearly 1,000 pages, the proposal funnels increased funding to border enforcement, national defense, and energy infrastructure, while offsetting costs through reductions in healthcare and nutrition assistance.

Though Republicans control both chambers, party lines are blurred as lawmakers grapple with the scale of welfare cuts tied to sustaining $3.8 trillion in tax relief.

If the Senate passes it, the legislation moves to the House for a final stamp before reaching President Trump’s desk.

From late Monday into Tuesday, senators debated dozens of amendments in a “vote-a-rama” marathon lasting over 22 hours.

Around 06:00 EST (11:00 GMT), Vice President JD Vance arrived on Capitol Hill—suggesting Republicans may soon need his tie-breaking vote. The party is bracing for up to three defections; exceeding that would force Vance’s intervention.

Notably, Elon Musk has emerged as a vocal critic of the bill and Senate Republicans, lambasting those who “campaigned on reducing government spending” only to later support “the biggest debt increase in history.”

Musk, who previously led a government task force known as Doge (Department of Government Efficiency) to slash spending, parted ways with the administration over this very legislation.

With the national debt hovering around $36 trillion, the new legislation could push that figure up by another $3.3 trillion, according to recent estimates from the Treasury.

Experts from the Congressional Budget Office warn the bill’s proposed cuts could strip nearly 12 million Americans of their health insurance.

Republican efforts to deepen welfare reductions aim to safeguard the $3.8 trillion Trump tax cuts. One such amendment, offered by Senator John Cornyn, would have trimmed Medicaid funds to states offering coverage to undocumented immigrants accused of serious crimes—but it failed to pass.

Democrats have vigorously resisted these reductions, attempting to amend the legislation. Senator Ed Markey, for instance, proposed removing a provision he argued would undermine rural hospitals—though his amendment also failed. Similar attempts to restore food assistance faced party-line defeats.

Two Republican senators joined Democrats in opposing the motion to even debate the bill, citing the need for more revisions. One of them, North Carolina’s Thom Tillis, announced his retirement afterward, criticizing the bill as a betrayal of voter promises:
“Too many elected officials are motivated by pure raw politics who really don’t give a damn about the people they promised to represent on the campaign trail.”

Kentucky’s Senator Rand Paul also opposed the measure, citing concerns about ballooning debt and Medicaid cuts.

Once the Senate resolves its version, the House could vote as early as Wednesday on the compromise bill, which previously passed there by just one vote.

However, staunch fiscal conservatives in the House’s Freedom Caucus have threatened to block the Senate’s version, citing its addition of more than $650 billion in new deficit spending.

Still, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt has stated that Trump remains “confident” the bill will reach his desk by July 4 for final approval.

Musk has again floated the idea of launching a new political party should the bill pass.

In a sharp rebuke on Truth Social, Trump wrote:
“Elon may get more subsidy than any human being in history, by far, and without subsidies, Elon would probably have to close up shop and head back home to South Africa.”