Despite political posturing, Rep. Don Bacon ultimately follows along to give Trump his domestic agenda
By: Juan Salinas II
Nebraska Examiner
LINCOLN — Republican leadership on the Hill successfully wrangled enough Senate and House Republicans, including the Nebraska federal delegation, into supporting President Donald Trump’s “big beautiful bill.”
The bill passed the U.S. House along party lines, 218-214, and will now be sent to the president to be signed into law. There was no political surprise from the all-Republican Nebraska federal delegation, who spent the week defending the GOP mega bill through national interviews on the Hill.
“We’re delivering on President Trump’s growth agenda,” Rep. Mike Flood, who represents eastern Nebraska’s 1st District, told Fox Business. “This is about growth.”
The only two House Republicans to vote against the bill were Pennsylvania Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick and Kentucky Rep. Thomas Massie.
Earlier this week, the GOP mega bill passed the Senate after an overnight session, with a tie-breaking vote by Vice President JD Vance. U.S. Sens. Deb Fischer and Pete Ricketts have been interviewed about what they said is the importance of preserving Trump’s tax cuts.
In a trend, Nebraska’s Omaha-based 2nd Congressional District Rep. Don Bacon vocally pushed back, expressing concerns about the Senate version of the bill’s proposed cuts to Medicaid, emphasizing that he had received reassurances the bill would not degrade the quality of healthcare for people covered by Medicaid.
He even said he won’t support the Senate’s reconciliation bill if it cut the Medicaid provider tax rate.
But in the end, he voted for it. Bacon defended his vote, like the rest of the delegation, by emphasizing the preservation of the Trump tax cuts.
“I wish they had done the house … version,” Bacon told CNN, “But I have an opportunity to protect taxpayers … from a 20% tax increase.”
Rep. Adrian Smith, who represents Nebraska’s largely rural 3rd District, said on the House floor, “We’re stopping a tax increase on the average middle class household.”
Trump and Republican leadership in Congress successfully made their self-imposed deadline of July 4 to get the “big beautiful bill” to the president’s desk. Now the delegation will try to sell the bill to Nebraskans, as multiple polls indicate that Trump’s signature piece of legislation is unpopular among Americans who are aware of it.
The bill would make tax cuts from the first Trump administration permanent, cementing most of its benefits for high earners. It also introduces some new temporary tax breaks for workers earning less, boosts funding for immigration enforcement, starts funding Trump’s “Golden Dome” missile defense program and accomplishes other goals from Trump’s domestic agenda.
To offset the cost of the mega bill, the plan is to reduce spending on the social safety net by adding work requirements for Medicaid and food stamps. Also, by lowering provider taxes, a tax nearly every state uses to help fund Medicaid programs.
Congressional experts have estimated that the package would add $3.253 trillion to the debt during the next decade. An analysis by the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office also estimates that 5.2 million adults would lose Medicaid coverage due to the stricter requirements, which are expected to save the federal government $280 billion over the next six years.
The bill would require able-bodied people and working-aged individuals to show the government proof of employment to remain on the program every six months. For months, state lawmakers, left-leaning political advocacy organizations, medical professionals, activists and some everyday Nebraskans have expressed concerns about the “disastrous” consequences of the mega bill’s Medicaid cuts for healthcare access and to rural hospitals.
Trump’s mega bill includes $50 billion for rural hospitals as an attempt to offset Medicaid cuts, but according to KFF, a health research organization, analysis, those cuts could decrease Medicaid spending in rural areas by $155 billion over the next decade.
In Nebraska, it’s estimated that the state would lose between $3 billion and $5 billion in Medicaid federal funding over the next 10 years, according to KKF. The director of the Nebraska Rural Health Association stated that six rural Nebraska hospitals would likely close as a result.
A rural hospital in southwest Nebraska, Curtis Medical Center, has already announced plans to close in the coming months because of the anticipated Medicaid cuts.
“Unfortunately, the current financial environment, driven by anticipated federal budget cuts to Medicaid, has made it impossible for us to continue operating all of our services, many of which have faced significant financial challenges for years,” Troy Bruntz, president and CEO of Community Hospital, said in a news release.
Local Nebraska reactions:
Gov. Jim Pillen, shortly following the House vote, said in a statement that he believes Nebraska supports Trump’s vision for “the America First Agenda.”
“Nebraska’s Congressional delegation deserves a lot of credit for working day and night to deliver policy that puts our state and country on a trajectory of great growth,” Pillen said. He said the legislation “extends tax cuts for families, boosts our military, secures our border, and grows agriculture.”
Jeremy Nordquist, president of the Nebraska Hospital Association, said, that Nebraska hospitals have been “clear” throughout this debate: “This package will undermine health care in our state, hurt patients, and drive up insurance premiums.”
A Nebraska Appleseed spokesperson said the bill “will cause irreparable harm to Nebraskans for decades to come.” The advocacy group said, for example, 40,000 Nebraskans are at risk of losing their Medicaid healthcare by imposing the work requirements.
Nebraska Farm Bureau President Mark McHargue said Trump’s mega bill is “a win for Nebraska’s farm and ranch families, and we look forward to continuing to work with our stellar congressional delegation on legislation to improve the lives of our state’s food, fuel, and fiber producers.”
Nebraska Republican Party chair Mary Jane Truemper said it’s “a win for everyone who believes in a strong work ethic, limited government, and opportunity for all.”
Nebraska Democratic Party chair Jane Kleeb said the Republican Party has delivered a “devastating” blow to that American’s “promise of opportunity.”