By Brendan Scanland
WASHINGTON, D.C. — The U.S. House is back in the spotlight as lawmakers enter the final stage of debate over President Trump’s sweeping legislative package — dubbed the “One, Big, Beautiful Bill.”
Originally passed by the House in May, the bill underwent several modifications in the Senate, including changes to clean energy tax credits. Today, one day after the legislation was sent over by the Senate, House Democrats made a last-ditch effort to protect Medicaid and SNAP from major reforms that are expected to impact millions of Americans.
“This bill will kill good blue-collar manufacturing jobs that we need to rebuild the economy in this country. It closes rural hospitals. It defunds health care, all to give trillions of dollars in tax cuts to your cronies,” said Rep. Josh Riley (D-N.Y.), as House Democrats lined up on the House floor, proposing a series of amendments to protect entitlement programs Wednesday afternoon.
But it’s not just cuts to the social safety net that are causing concern.
“Why would anyone want to raise the price of energy by stripping away tax credits?” asked Mitch Carmichael, executive director of Built for America and former Lieutenant Governor and Economic Development Secretary of West Virginia.
Carmichael, a lifelong conservative from a fossil fuel state, supports- and is advocating- for the tax credits.
“I support these mechanisms because I know they’re good for the economy. I’ve seen them work,” he said.
The House’s original version of the “Big, Beautiful Bill” drew sharp criticism from clean energy advocates over a proposed rapid phase-out of the Inflation Reduction Act tax credits that support wind and solar projects.
“The biggest concern I had — and others within the organization — was that these projects would just immediately dry up. Or that the ones built around these tax credits would dissipate,” said Carmichael.
Last-minute Senate negotiations this week brought some concessions, including a slower rollback of the tax credits compared to the initial bill. But advocates say the changes still come at the wrong time.
“There is a misconception, I think, that we would be displacing fossil fuel use with clean energy. That is not the case at all. The demand for energy is growing exponentially,” said Carmichael.
Most Republicans argue the bill is a game-changer that will streamline regulations, cut wasteful spending, and fuel long-term economic growth. Speaker Mike Johnson (R- La.) and House Republicans are racing to send the bill to President Trump’s desk by July 4.
“We remain optimistic we’re going to land this plane. So stay tuned,” Johnson said.
The House spent most of Wednesday morning and afternoon debating amendments and rules to consider the bill until about 2:00 pm, which is when a procedural vote- necessary to advance the bill- was open. As of 6:00pm, the procedural, or “pre-test” vote still remains stuck, signaling there are still some concerns among House Republicans that need to be sorted out.
If the House passes this pre-test– it’s all but a sure-sign Speaker Mike Johnson (R- La.) will have the votes needed to pass the “Big, Beautiful Bill.”
