Donald Trump issued a call to arms over the weekend, urging Republican congressional leaders to pass a legislative package that would extend his 2017 tax cuts that favor the ultra-wealthy and large corporations.
“Members of Congress are getting to work on one powerful Bill that will bring our Country back, and make it greater than ever before,” Trump wrote on Truth Social. “We must Secure our Border, Unleash American Energy, and Renew the Trump Tax Cuts, which were the largest in History, but we will make it even better – NO TAX ON TIPS.”
Appearing on Fox Business, Speaker Mike Johnson said he intends to press Trump’s legislative agenda with a bill that secures passage by Memorial Day on May 26.
“At the end of the day, President Trump is going to prefer, as he likes to say, ‘one big, beautiful bill.’ And there’s a lot of merit to that, because we can put it all together, one big up-or-down vote, which can save the country, quite literally, because there are so many elements to it,” he said.
The GOP reportedly plans to pass the bill by using the congressional reconciliation process, which would bypass the need for a 60-vote majority in the Senate and instead only require 50 votes plus the vote of Vice President JD Vance.
Democrats have used reconciliation in recent history to pass bills that would benefit a much wider swath of Americans than billionaires and large corporations. Under President Joe Biden, reconciliation was used to pass the COVID-era American Rescue Plan stimulus legislation as well as the Inflation Reduction Act.
Under President Barack Obama, reconciliation was key to the passage of the Affordable Care Act (aka Obamacare), which has extended health insurance to millions of people.
On the other hand, Republicans used reconciliation most recently to pass Trump’s 2017 Tax Cuts and Job Act, which cut taxes for the wealthy like Trump donor and billionaire Elon Musk.
Sen. Lindsey Graham, South Carolina Republican and key Trump ally, appeared on Fox Business to urge passage of the new Trump legislation, arguing that it is vital in securing the U.S.-Mexico border.
“Every day we delay is a dangerous day for America,” Graham said, lamenting the fact that Democrats are unlikely to back plans for mass deportation that would be included in the legislative package. For years, Republicans and right-wing outlets like Fox News have exaggerated the danger posed by immigrants to rally conservative votes.
Republicans will have little room for error. Despite the party’s success in the 2024 election, the margins in the House are in the single digits. If the legislative package receives expected unanimous Democratic opposition, it would only take a few Republican detractors to kill the proposal.
“Our position is that it is not acceptable to cut Social Security, cut Medicare, cut Medicaid, cut veterans benefits or cut nutritional assistance from children and families in order to pay for massive tax breaks for billionaires and wealthy corporations,” House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries said in a speech on Friday.
During his first term, Trump failed to secure the passage of legislation on key issues like health care and infrastructure because Republicans could not agree within their own ranks.
The passage of a bill extending tax cuts to billionaires would also lead to large deficits, even as Republican leaders have complained about the size of the national deficit. According to the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget, Trump’s proposed tax cuts could increase the deficit by $4-5 trillion.
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The GOP’s prioritization of legislation tilted in favor of the super-rich comes just a few months after Musk, the wealthiest person in the world, spent at least $250 million to elect Trump. Since then, Musk and Trump have been operating effectively as co-presidents, with Trump issuing orders in line with Musk’s wishes.
At the same time, a billionaire tax cut would benefit Trump’s cabinet selections, who are among his closest advisers.
Trump’s 2017 Tax Cuts and Job Act failed to stimulate the economy as he said it would. In fact, it was not until Biden took office and passed legislation like the American Rescue Plan, Inflation Reduction Act, and the CHIPS and Science Act that the economy began to recover from the coronavirus pandemic—and Trump’s first term.
