At July 4 celebration, Trump signs tax and spending cut bill

By Darlene Superville and Nicholas Ricciardi Associated Press WASHINGTON President Donald Trump signed his package of tax breaks and spending cuts into law Friday after his cajoling produced almost unanimous Republican backing in Congress for the domestic priority that could cement his second-term legacy Flanked by Republican legislators and members of his Cabinet Trump signed the multitrillion-dollar rule outside the White House and then banged down the gavel that House Speaker Mike Johnson gifted him that was used during the bill s final passage Thursday RELATED Bay Area Democratic leaders assail Trump tax and initiative bill after Senate passes it Against odds that at times seemed improbable Trump achieved his goal of celebrating a historic and divisive legislative triumph in time for the nation s birthday Fighter jets and a stealth bomber streaked through the sky over the annual White House Fourth of July picnic as Trump and first lady Melania Trump stepped out onto the White House balcony America s winning winning winning like never before Trump revealed noting last month s bombing campaign against Iran s nuclear plan which he mentioned the flyover was meant to honor Promises made promises kept and we ve kept them The White House was hung with red white and blue bunting for the regular Fourth of July festivities The United States Marine Band played patriotic marches and in a typical Trumpian touch tunes by s pop icons Chaka Khan and Huey Lewis The two separate flyovers bookended Trump s appearance and the band playing the national anthem Democrats assailed the package as a giveaway to the rich that will rob millions more lower-income people of their medical insurance food assistance and financial stability I never thought that I d be on the House floor saying that this is a crime scene Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries of New York announced during a record-breaking speech that delayed the bill s passage by eight-plus hours It s a crime scene going after the strength and the safety and the well-being of the American people The law extends Trump s multitrillion-dollar tax cuts and cuts Medicaid and food stamps by trillion It provides for a massive increase in immigration enforcement Congress nonpartisan scorekeeper projects that nearly million more people will lose healthcare insurance under the law The bill passed the House on a largely party-line vote Thursday culminating a monthslong push by the GOP to cram bulk of its legislative priorities into a single budget bill that could be enacted without Senate Democrats being able to block it indefinitely by filibustering It passed by a single vote in the Senate where North Carolina Republican Thom Tillis reported he would not run for reelection after incurring Trump s wrath in opposing it Vice President JD Vance had to cast the tie-breaking vote In the House where two Republicans voted against it one conservative maverick Tom Massie of Kentucky has also become a target of Trump s well-funded political operation The regulation amounts to a repudiation of the agendas of the past two Democratic presidents Barack Obama and Joe Biden in rolling back Obama s Medicaid expansion under his signature vitality law and Biden s tax credits for renewable capacity The Congressional Budget Office estimates the package will add trillion to the deficit over the decade and million more people will go without healthcare coverage Trump exulted in his political achievement Thursday night in Iowa where he attended a kickoff of events celebrating the country s th birthday next year I want to thank Republican congressmen and women because what they did is incredible he announced The president complained that Democrats voted against the bill because they hate Trump but I hate them too The package is certain to be a flashpoint in next year s midterm elections and Democrats are making ambitious plans for rallies voter registration drives attack ads bus tours and even a multiday vigil all intended to highlight the the bulk controversial elements Upon his return to Washington early Friday Trump described the package as very popular though polling suggests that masses opinion is mixed at best For example a Washington Post Ipsos poll exposed that majorities of U S adults backing increasing the annual child tax credit and eliminating taxes on earnings from tips and about half advocacy work requirements for particular adults who receive Medicaid But the poll uncovered majorities oppose reducing federal funding for food assistance to low-income families and spending about billion to build and maintain migrant detention centers About revealed it was unacceptable that the bill is expected to increase the trillion U S debt by more than trillion over the next decade