Democrats in Wisconsin’s congressional delegation railed against proposed cuts to social safety net programs in President Donald Trump’s budget bill passed by the U.S. Senate. Meanwhile, Republican U.S. Sen. Ron Johnson, who switched his vote to support the plan, hailed the passage but said work to reduce federal spending has “only just begun.”
After weeks of negotiations in Washington, the Senate on Tuesday passed a modified version of Trump’s “One Big Beautiful Bill Act” on the narrowest of margins. The final vote was 51-50 with Vice President JD Vance stepping in to break the tie.
The bill permanently extends tax cuts enacted by Republicans in 2017 and cuts spending on Medicaid, Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) food stamp benefits and clean energy programs. Because the Senate version differs from the version passed by the U.S. House of Representatives, it will need another vote in the House before it can be signed by Trump. Trump has told lawmakers he wants to sign that bill by July 4.
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An analysis by the American Hospital Association estimated that more than 30,000 Wisconsinites could lose Medicaid coverage and the state’s rural hospitals could lose $607 million under an earlier version of the bill passed by the House.
Democratic U.S. Sen Tammy Baldwin said in a statement that she voted against “rigging our tax code in favor of the biggest corporations and ultra-wealthy — all on the backs of working families who are just trying to get by.”
She said she’s “disgusted” with the budget language but is also “fired up” to continue mobilizing Wisconsinites against it.
“This fight isn’t over, and together, we can still beat this thing,” Baldwin said.
Johnson was among the 51 votes to pass the legislation, which is notable because he had been considered a leading critic among fiscal hawks who spoke out against the deficit spending included in the measure. On Saturday night, Johnson switched to a “yes” on a key procedural vote allowing the bill to be amended in the Senate. On Monday, he told NPR’s “Morning Edition” the flip was due to a “commitment” from Trump to cut federal spending.
In a statement following the Senate’s approval of its bill, Johnson said the nation “avoided a $4 trillion automatic tax increase and a default on our debt” while also accusing former President Joe Biden and Democrats of driving up the federal deficit.
“While the bill is a step forward, we have only just begun the difficult task of reducing spending, and there is still a long way to go,” Johnson said. “A rigorous effort will soon be announced to review every program and every line of the federal budget, looking for ways to reduce spending to a reasonable pre-pandemic level. I look forward to being fully involved in that effort to put America on a path to fiscal sustainability.”
According to a report from The New York Times, the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office estimated Sunday that the bill would add at least $3.3 trillion to the national debt.
Few reactions to Senate vote from Wisconsin’s 8 US House members
Many of Wisconsin’s House Republicans were mum on the Senate’s passage of the budget bill as of Tuesday afternoon. A statement sent to WPR by U.S. Rep. Derrick Van Orden, R-Prairie du Chien, was brief.
“I congratulate my Senate colleagues on passing this bill,” Van Orden said.
U.S. Rep. Gwen Moore, D-Milwaukee, had more to say. In a social media post, she claimed the Senate version “is even crueler than the House version.”
“TRILLIONS of cuts to Medicaid,” Moore said. “MILLIONS of people losing health coverage. TRILLIONS added to the debt. All to lavish more on the wealthiest among us.”
U.S. Rep. Mark Pocan used the bill’s passage to continue his ongoing online feud with Van Orden and posted a survey question on social media about how he should vote on what he called “the Big Ugly Bill, Senate version.” The options were, “No,” “Hell no,” and “F*** no.”
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