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Trump's 'Big, Beautiful Bill' approved by House after overnight session

After the House Rules Committee approved the legislation late Wednesday, Republicans narrowly passed the bill early Thursday morning.
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The House of Representatives approved a sweeping spending bill after a marathon committee hearing that led right into an overnight House session.

The House approved the bill by a 215-214-1 margin. Two Republicans joined the entire Democratic caucus in voting down the legislation. One Republican voted "present."

The bill now heads to the Senate, where changes to the legislation are likely.

The bill's passage marked a major legislative victory for President Donald Trump and Speaker Mike Johnson, who spent all day Wednesday trying to win over a handful of Republican holdouts. Republicans came back late Wednesday with some changes to the bill that appeased some apprehensive members. Most notably, Republicans decided to move up the deadline for Medicaid work requirements.

"Unified control of government is a rare mandate," Johnson said. "It doesn't happen very often. It's happened just three times for our party in the last half century. We do not take it for granted, and we are delivering on that mandate here today. The American people gave us a mandate in November. They sent a message with their vote. They gave this side of the aisle the power, and we're gonna use it to make their lives better."

Before the House's early Thursday vote, a key House committee approved the bill by sending it to the full House for consideration after more than 23 straight hours of hearings

The House Rules Committee approved the legislation as the clock struck midnight on an 8-4 vote, following a marathon markup session that began at 1 a.m. Eastern Time on Wednesday, and following several subsequent hours of committee debate.

House Democrats criticized the bill's proposals.

"This is one big ugly bill that House Republicans are trying to jam down the throats of the American people under the cover of darkness," said House Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries. This legislation will not make life better tor the American people. The GOP tax scam represents an assault on the economy, an assault on health care, an assault on nutritional assistance, an assault on tax fairness, and an assault on fiscal responsibility."

President Trump's "big, beautiful" spending bill runs to more than 1,100 pages. It includes provisions to extend tax cuts that he enacted during his first term in 2017 and an expansion of the debt limit.

One of the most contentious parts of the bill involves changes to Medicaid. The proposal includes adding work requirements for older adults and some parents, though not all Republicans support these changes.

RELATED STORY | House Rules hearing on Trump’s 'big, beautiful bill' continues for more than 17 hours

The Rules Committee considered changes spearheaded by Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson, as he sought to bring around enough Republican lawmakers to pass the bill in the full House. On Wednesday, Johnson and other GOP lawmakers visited the White House to meet with President Trump about the bill, holding what Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said were "productive" discussions.