Overnight Showdown: Did the Senate Pass the 'Big Beautiful Bill?'
After an all-night vote-a-rama and fierce behind-the-scenes wrangling, Senate Republicans inch closer to passing Trump’s sweeping domestic bill, but internal divisions, a ballooning deficit, and looming House resistance keep the outcome uncertain.
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After an all-night marathon session, the US Senate remains locked in heated debate over President Donald Trump’s signature domestic legislation. The bill, dubbed the “One Big Beautiful Bill,” represents the most sweeping rewrite of tax and spending policy since the Trump tax cuts of 2017. It includes deep tax reductions, dramatic increases to defense and border security funding, and historic cuts to federal safety-net programs like Medicaid and food assistance.
Senators have been voting on dozens of amendments in what is known as a “vote-a-rama,” a fast-paced, open-ended session that allows for nearly unlimited proposed changes. The process began at 9:35 a.m. ET on Monday and continued through the night into Tuesday afternoon, with no final vote yet scheduled.
Senate Majority Leader John Thune told reporters early Tuesday morning that they were “close” to wrapping up, but admitted that several more amendment votes still remained.
Trump has publicly demanded that the bill be delivered to his desk by July 4. The timeline is tight. Even if the Senate passes the legislation, it must return to the House, where internal GOP divisions threaten to delay or derail final approval.
The Senate version of the bill is even more expansive than the House-passed version. According to the Congressional Budget Office, it would add $3.3 trillion to the national deficit over ten years, compared to $2.7 trillion under the House plan. The increase is driven largely by permanent corporate tax cuts and more modest reductions to programs like SNAP.
The legislation would cut federal Medicaid funding by $930 billion, reduce enrollment in the Affordable Care Act by nearly 12 million people over a decade, and for the first time in the program’s history, require certain working-age adults to be employed in order to qualify for benefits. Unlike the House version, the Senate’s proposal imposes this work requirement even on parents of children aged 14 and up.
Several amendments passed overnight. One bars unemployment benefits for individuals earning over $1 million annually. Another, which drew near-unanimous bipartisan support, removed a provision that would have blocked states from enforcing their own artificial intelligence regulations for ten years.
That AI moratorium had emerged as a red line for some House Republicans, including Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, who said she could not support the bill unless the language was removed. The Senate vote to strip it passed 99 to 1.
Amid the tension, signs of fatigue filled the chamber. Senators bundled in blankets and hoodies, reading books and taking quiet naps between votes. Sen. Lisa Murkowski brought a large fleece blanket. Sen. Susan Collins borrowed it during one break. Sen. John Cornyn read a biography of William F. Buckley Jr. on his Kindle. Staffers moved quietly through the chamber as negotiations continued behind the scenes.
But despite a few moments of calm, the bill’s path forward remains uncertain.
Key Republican senators like Ron Johnson and Rand Paul have voiced skepticism over the deficit implications. Moderate Republicans like Murkowski and Collins voted with Democrats on several amendments aimed at softening Medicaid and rural hospital cuts, though most of those proposals were ultimately blocked.
Sen. Susan Collins introduced an amendment to help rural hospitals by raising taxes on individuals earning over $25 million, but the amendment failed in a procedural vote. She later criticized Democrats for not supporting the effort, calling it hypocritical, though she declined to say whether she would support or oppose the final bill.
Outside the Capitol, protests continued overnight. At least 38 demonstrators were arrested, many protesting Medicaid cuts and the bill’s impact on low-income Americans. Inside, the atmosphere remained tense.
If the Senate can pass the final version of the bill, it will return to the House as early as Wednesday. Speaker Mike Johnson has not committed to a vote, and several House conservatives remain wary of the revised package.
The clock is ticking. Trump wants the bill signed into law by Independence Day. Whether Republicans can deliver remains an open question.
If passed, the bill would mark a generational reshaping of the American economic and social landscape — and set the stage for fierce political battles heading into the 2026 midterm elections.