Riddled in controversy, the Trump administration’s dismissal of questions about the alleged ‘Epstein file’ comes at a consequential time. As headlines swirl over what may lie in sealed documents, public attention risks shifting away from a scandal with far-reaching consequences: the passage of Trump’s signature domestic policy, the ‘One Big, Beautiful Bill’.
While the media scrambles to dissect the scandal, the administration and Congress have pushed through a bill that is already reshaping America’s healthcare, tax system and immigration enforcement, with fierce debates in Congress and across the country.
The Trump administration may be willing to endure the storm of one controversy to divert public attention from another. And while the nation’s attention is pulled in every direction, the real story is unfolding: a law that slashes Medicaid, lavishes tax breaks on corporations and bankrolls ICE’s expansion, shifting the burden of austerity onto the most vulnerable while empowering the powerful.
The domestic policy agenda bill, dubbed the ‘One Big, Beautiful Bill, ’ was passed by both the Houses of the US Congress with a narrow margin. After Vice President J D Vance cast the tie-breaking vote in his capacity as the president of the Senate, a revised version of the bill was adopted by the Senate.
The bill, formally titled ‘Limit, Save and Grow Act of 2025’, was later sent to the House of Representatives for adoption. Following a lengthy and drawn-out process, the bill also passed the House. It became a law after President Trump signed it. The passage of the bill, however, was not easy for Republican lawmakers. The bill failed to garner a single Democratic vote; instead, five Republicans, combined in both houses of Congress, broke ranks and voted against the bill. The resistance to the bill reflects the degree of unpopularity of the bill among the populace.
For instance, a Fox News poll found that 38 per cent of registered voters supported the bill, while 59 per cent opposed it. Several reputable sources, including The Washington Post, conducted polls showing a widespread lack of support for the measure.
The ‘One Big, Beautiful Bill’ faces fierce backlash over its policy provisions. In the US, healthcare is a prosperous business for corporations. In 2023 alone, people, through taxes, insurance and out-of-pocket charges, paid $4.7 trillion on healthcare. In 2024, the UnitedHealth Group, the US’s largest insurance corporation, generated over $400 billion in revenue.
While corporations profit, lawmakers are shrinking safety net programmes like Medicaid, on which millions of people depend. The bill adversely impacts people’s ability to afford healthcare by slashing the Medicaid programme, a vital program that reduces medical costs for vulnerable communities. The Times reports that roughly 70 million Americans, one in five people, rely on Medicaid.
Republicans, in the name of reducing waste and fraud, have overhauled the Medicaid program: the bill slashes federal Medicaid funding by $900 billion over 10 years, resulting in 7 to 12 million more uninsured by 2034.
As a result of slashing funding for Medicaid, a community hospital in rural Nebraska, dependent on Medicaid to serve people, has already announced its closure, with six more facing the imminent threat of closure, according to the state’s public media. In response, Sen. Sanders of Vermont wrote on X, “This is a dark day for rural America and for our country”, emphasising the risk rural areas face.
The bill further restricts people from accessing Medicaid benefits by making them inaccessible: it has mandated a work requirement for “able-bodied” individuals. States are also now required to confirm eligibility every six months, which can result in excessive paperwork that
individuals may struggle with, potentially leading to them losing access to Medicaid.
These cuts are financing tax breaks for corporations and wealthy individuals. The bill reduces the corporate tax rate from 21 per cent to 15 per cent, which primarily benefits shareholders – most of whom are in the top 10 per cent of earners. Approximately 90 per cent of the tax benefits are distributed to the top 20 per cent of US households. The doubling of the estate tax exemption primarily benefits the ultra-rich, as it is becoming increasingly difficult for the middle class to own property.
These tax cuts are augmenting the federal deficit by $1 trillion over the next ten years. Nevertheless, the bill favours the resourceful at the expense of the working class, while further adding to the already exorbitant national debt.
The same bill that guts Medicaid also turbocharges immigration enforcement. Buried in its provisions is a $45 billion allocation to ICE–an unprecedented increase. Acting like President Trump’s private militia, ICE is involved in the kidnappings of immigrants and green card holders, holding them without due process. Recently, ICE has established a front in Florida: The Alligator Alcatraz. The funding is guaranteed to continue under the ‘One Big, Beautiful Bill’.
The bill crystallises a brutal governing philosophy: punish the vulnerable, enrich the powerful. By slashing Medicaid for millions, lavishing tax breaks on corporations and bankrolling ICE’s cruel expansion, the bill exposes a moral calculus. As hospitals close, families lose healthcare, and detention centres swell, the legislation’s true beneficiaries emerge: CEOs, shareholders and a deportation machine empowered to act with impunity.
The ‘One Big, Beautiful Bill’ does not just reshape policy – it reorients national priorities. While ICE’s cages fill up, the wealthy cash in and millions are left to fight for survival in a system rigged against them. The bill’s passage marks a breaking point: will Americans stand up against tyranny or will they accept the new normal? One thing is certain: it is not governance, but rather a war waged against the vulnerable by the wealthy.
The writer lives in New York and aspires to be a legal scholar. He can be reached at:
alibilal4471@gmail.com
