One Big, Brutal Betrayal: The Truth Behind Trump’s Budget Bill

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Podcast 138

By Jackalyn Rainosek, PhD

Introduction: The Illusion of Beauty

Donald Trump proudly branded his latest budget proposal the “One Big Beautiful Bill.” But what lies beneath the name is anything but beautiful. In reality, it’s a cold, calculated attempt to reshape America by gutting health care, slashing food assistance, removing climate protections, and enforcing permanent tax breaks for the wealthy—all at the expense of everyday Americans. What Trump couldn’t dismantle outright in his first term, he now seeks to destroy through the fine print of a budget bill. Americans are right to ask, “Are we going to be, okay?” The honest answer is not if this bill becomes law.

Behind Closed Doors: What This Bill Really Does

This bill is an act of political theater and economic sabotage. Trump and his Republican allies are trying to fast-track a reconciliation bill that makes permanent the tax cuts from 2017—tax cuts that disproportionately benefited corporations and the ultra-rich. But here’s the catch: you can’t give big tax breaks unless you take something big away.

So what’s being sacrificed? Programs millions of Americans rely on: Medicaid, the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), health care subsidies, Planned Parenthood access, and funding for climate resilience. While the wealthy celebrate, struggling families are left wondering how they’ll afford groceries, stay healthy, or even survive. This is not governing—it’s economic warfare against the most vulnerable.

And worst of all, it’s being rushed through under the guise of budget legislation, bypassing the full democratic process.

The Byrd Rule: A Procedural Lifeline?

There’s one small chance to stop the worst parts of this bill—an arcane but powerful rule known as the Byrd Rule, named after the late Senator Robert Byrd of West Virginia. The Byrd Rule restricts what can be included in reconciliation bills, limiting them strictly to budgetary matters. If a provision has only an “incidental” effect on the federal budget, it must be stripped out.

That means it will fall to Senate Parliamentarian Elizabeth MacDonough to determine what stays and what goes. Fortunately, MacDonough has already signaled some resistance in the past—such as when she struck down similar Planned Parenthood defunding efforts in 2017.

There’s hope that she may again rule key provisions out of order, including:

  • A 10-year ban on state regulation of artificial intelligence—an outright attack on state sovereignty with no real budgetary impact.
  • Language barring Medicaid patients from receiving care at Planned Parenthood, which, again, is ideological policy—not budget reform.
  • Provisions that limit federal judges’ power by forcing plaintiffs to pay bonds before seeking injunctions—a direct attempt to hamstring civil rights litigation.

If these provisions are removed under the Byrd Rule, it will be a victory for the rule of law, but it won’t undo the broader damage of this budget.

Health Care on the Chopping Block

Perhaps the most destructive part of Trump’s “beautiful” bill is what it does to health care. Representative Elissa Slotkin described it clearly: this bill “cuts a bunch of programs we all care about – particularly health care – to pay for permanent tax cuts for the wealthiest tax brackets.”

Whether you have private insurance, Medicaid, or rely on emergency care, you will feel this bill. Millions could lose coverage due to Medicaid cuts and more stringent work requirements. Those who remain insured will likely face higher premiums as hospitals try to absorb the cost of caring for the uninsured.

This is death by a thousand cuts to Obamacare—a policy Trump has been desperate to dismantle ever since he first took office. He failed to repeal it outright, so now he’s doing it piecemeal, under the radar, buried in hundreds of pages of budget language.

The effect? Families skipping doctor’s visits. Rural hospitals closing. Seniors facing impossible choices between prescriptions and food.

Tax Cuts for the Wealthy, Cuts for Everyone Else

The only Americans who truly win under this bill are those who least need help. The bill extends and expands Trump’s 2017 tax cuts, offering permanent relief to corporations and individuals earning over $400,000 a year. But the tradeoff is devastating.

A recent Washington Post–Ipsos poll shows:

  • 63% of Americans oppose the bill when they learn it would increase the national debt by $3 trillion over 10 years.
  • 66% oppose cutting food assistance programs.
  • 61% oppose spending $45 billion on migrant detention centers.
  • Only 30% support extending tax cuts for corporations.

Most shockingly, Trump had floated the idea of raising taxes on people making more than $2.5 million per year—an idea that has majority support from both Democrats and Republicans—but his own party refused to include it in the final bill.

Let that sink in: The wealthiest Americans are being protected, while your health care, your food assistance, your child’s school lunch, and your access to clean air and water are all on the chopping block.

Gutting Democracy and Civil Rights Protections

Beyond dollars and cents, this bill also contains provisions that threaten the functioning of our democracy.

For example, one clause would limit the power of federal judges to hold the executive branch accountable. It would require plaintiffs—often civil rights groups—to post bonds before a judge can issue an injunction against the government. This would dramatically reduce the number of successful legal challenges to unconstitutional actions.

And that’s no accident.

It’s part of a broader plan to weaken oversight and concentrate power in Trump’s hands. These changes are buried in budget language but have nothing to do with fiscal policy. They are about silencing dissent and neutering the judiciary—plain and simple.

Public Opinion: Americans Are Not Fooled

Despite Republican efforts to rush this bill through by July 4, Americans are not buying it. According to the Washington Post–Ipsos poll:

  • 42% oppose the bill overall, while only 23% support it.
  • Among those who’ve actually heard of the bill, 64% oppose it—nearly 2-to-1.
  • 70% of Americans support raising taxes on individuals making $2.5 million or more.
  • 51% oppose ending tax breaks for clean energy.
  • Even Republicans are divided: 47% say a $3 trillion debt increase is unacceptable.

And that’s the most alarming part—many Americans still don’t know what’s in the bill. The bill is being pushed through fast, with little fanfare, so voters don’t have time to react. But those who are informed are making their voices clear: this bill is a betrayal of our values, our economy, and our future.

Conclusion: We Must Not Be Silent

Trump’s “One Big Beautiful Bill” is not beautiful. It is a brutal betrayal of working families, of the sick and elderly, of children and the poor, and of the very principles that should define our democracy.

This is not just a budget bill—it’s a blueprint for cruelty. It is the weaponization of fiscal policy to punish the vulnerable and reward the powerful. And if we remain silent, it will become the law of the land.

We must not let that happen.

Now is the time to speak out. To educate. To organize. To call our senators and demand they reject this bill. Because this country belongs to all of us—not just the wealthy, not just the connected, and not just the powerful.

We are the majority. And we must act like it.

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