House narrowly OKs budget plan for trillions of dollars in tax and spending cuts
WASHINGTON — The House narrowly adopted a sweeping budget resolution Tuesday night, paving the way for massive tax and spending reductions sought by President Trump — putting several California Republicans in a tricky position over future potential cuts to popular programs such as Medicaid.
The vote came after weeks of intense wrangling from House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.), and an extraordinary evening of voting, that first saw the lawmakers sent home, only to be called back minutes later to cast their votes on the controversial proposal. Rep. Thomas Massie of Kentucky was the lone Republican to vote against the measure, joining every Democrat. The final resolution passed 217 to 215.
Johnson presented a budget blueprint in the form of “one big, beautiful bill” backed by Trump, setting targets for government spending and revenue that would then allow Republicans to pass more detailed legislation later this year.
The speaker’s goal was to present the first large legislative package on the priorities Trump has outlined in his many executive orders, including funding priorities that he says aim to boost immigration restrictions, cut taxes and bolster the economy. The resolution entails $4.5 trillion in tax breaks and $2 trillion in spending cuts over 10 years.
The proposal directs certain committees to identify where to make those reductions. One of the most controversial programs facing major cuts is Medicaid, which funds healthcare for more than 72 million Americans. The Energy and Commerce Committee, which is responsible for Medicaid, is tasked with cutting $880 billion.
Republicans representing swing congressional districts in California — including Reps. David Valadao (R-Hanford), Young Kim (R-Anaheim Hills) and Ken Calvert (R-Corona) — voted to support their party’s agenda, setting themselves up for potentially serious blowback in their home communities for agreeing to cut Medicaid.
In Valadao’s 22nd Congressional District in particular, 67% of the population is on Medi-Cal, as Medicaid is known in California — the highest percentage in the state, according to the UC Berkeley Labor Center.
Residents have been gathering across Southern California to decry the impending cuts. “Rep. Young Kim, don’t take away our healthcare on Tuesday!” cried a sign at an Orange County protest Monday.
“The Republican budget is going to take healthcare away from millions of working Americans, and even children, to pay for a tax cut that Elon Musk and Republican billionaire donors asked for,” Rep. Pete Aguilar (D-Redlands), chair of the House Democratic Caucus, said at a news conference Tuesday. “This vote doesn’t just open the door to Medicaid cuts, it guarantees them.”
House leaders repeatedly emphasized Tuesday that the budget outline does not include cuts to Medicaid. But Johnson refused to commit to fully funding the program and instead laid the groundwork to justify future cuts.
“Everybody is committed to preserving Medicare benefits for those who desperately need it and deserve it and qualify for it,” Johnson said. “What we’re talking about is rooting out the fraud, waste and abuse.”
Whether the bill would make it to the House floor remained in question late Tuesday, as Johnson raced around the chamber trying to shore up support with his narrow Republican majority. Trump also reportedly got involved, making calls to lawmakers to support the measure.
At one point, House leaders called the last vote of the evening without taking up the budget proposal, and lawmakers left the chambers to go home. But less than 15 minutes later, the vote was back on. House whips hurriedly sent messages to their members, “Return to floor immediately.”
Democratic leaders urged all their members to vote against the budget proposal, forcing Republicans to fall in line behind Johnson — including most who took issue with it. Rep. Brittany Pettersen (D-Colo.) returned from maternity leave to vote in the House, cradling her baby, born less than a month ago. Rep. Kevin Mullin (D-South San Francisco) had to “literally leave his hospital bed in California” to vote with a unified Democratic front, said House Minority Whip Katherine Clark (D-Mass.).
After more than 30 minutes of voting, freshman Rep. Adam Gray (D-Merced), who eked out a victory over Republican incumbent John Duarte in November, entered the room.
“Gray! Gray!” his Democratic colleagues on the floor cried out, shouting at him to cast his vote in time. His vote registered seconds before the gavel fell.
Now that it’s passed, the budget will move into committees to work out the details. But in addition to the Republicans worried about Medicaid, others concerned about the national debt were hoping for deeper spending cuts.
Democrats seized on the potential hit to Medicaid in their messaging in recent weeks, with the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee telling supporters in an email over the weekend that Republicans want to “rip away health care and food from American families.”
Congress has until March 14 to pass a budget or risk a government shutdown.
