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Trump vs. Rand Paul in tax bill fight

Rebecca Morin   Paste BN

Hello! Rebecca Morin here. President Donald Trump’s ally and friend, Kid Rock, opened a new “MAGA” friendly restaurant in Nashville – one that the president himself congratulated him on.

Trump vs. Rand Paul

As the Senate is set to take up President Donald Trump’s sweeping tax and domestic policy bill this week, the president is lashing out at one detractor: Republican Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky. Saying it will increase the debt ceiling by $5 trillion, Paul has repeatedly expressed opposition to the bill, which Trump has dubbed as the “big, beautiful bill.” Trump on Tuesday in a set of back-to-back posts on Truth Social said Paul’s own constituents "can't stand him.” Why Paul said he opposes Trump’s megabill.

  • Republicans hold a slim majority in the Senate, 53-47. That means Trump can lose no more than three Republican senators to pass the bill if no Democrats cross the aisle to support the legislation. Paul isn’t the only Republican to criticize the bill. Sens. Susan Collins of Maine and Josh Hawley of Missouri have also voiced concerns over Medicaid. Other senators such as Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska; John Curtis, R-Utah; and Thom Tillis, R-North Carolina, are worried about the package rolling back renewable energy tax credits. 
  • House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-Louisiana, tried to address concerns over Medicaid by saying that "4.8 million people will not lose their Medicaid unless they choose to do so." An estimate from the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office estimated that the bill would cut $723 billion from federal Medicaid spending and reduce the number of insured people by 7.6 million. The bill implements new requirements that some researchers argue that millions of people eligible for Medicaid could lose coverage because they are unable to meet the bureaucratic requirements to prove they are disabled, working or going to school. Johnson has urged the Senate to pass the sweeping bill with few changes to it, but the bill will likely go under changes to pass in the Senate.

A politics pit stop

Trump wants countries’ best offers in tariff talks push

President Donald Trump’s self-imposed tariff deadline is just five weeks away. And now the Trump administration wants countries to provide their best offer on trade negotiations by Wednesday in an effort to accelerate talks. White House officials, including economic adviser Kevin Hassett, have repeatedly promised that several tariff agreements were being finalized. However, only one agreement has been reached with a major U.S. trading partner: Britain. What to know about Trump’s tariff deadline.

Say cheese

A black background, a furrowed brow and a serious expression. The White House this week unveiled President Donald Trump’s official portrait. The portrait depicts the president in a blue suit and a red tie against a black backdrop. The image is high-contrast, darkly lit and close-up to the president's face. The new portrait is very different from his predecessors. Nearly all of the last 10 presidents have all smiled in their portraits. In his official portrait during his first term, Trump’s portrait was more traditional, featuring a smile and a background with the American flag. See Trump’s official portrait.

Got a burning question, or comment, for On Politics? You can submit them here or send me an email at rdmorin@usatoday.com.

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