House Freedom Caucus chair pans Senate GOP's ‘big, beautiful bill'
Rep. Andy Harris (R-Md.), the chairman of the conservative House Freedom Caucus, is staking opposition to the Senate's version of the 'big, beautiful bill,' spelling trouble for the legislation's chances of clearing the House down the road.
'The currently proposed Senate version of the One Big Beautiful Bill weakens key House priorities—it doesn't do enough to eliminate waste, fraud, and abuse in Medicaid, it backtracks on Green New Scam elimination included in the House bill, and it greatly increases the deficit – taking us even further from a balanced budget,' Harris wrote in X.
The Freedom Caucus chair — who voted 'present' when the measure passed the House — said he will go a step further if the Senate's bill, without any changes, comes to the floor.
'If the Senate tries to jam the House with this version, I won't vote 'present.' I'll vote NO,' he added.
The criticism comes as the Senate is racing to reach consensus on key sticking points in the sprawling tax cut and spending package, with GOP leaders pushing to meet their self-imposed July 4 deadline for enactment. Once the Senate clears the measure the House will have to give it a final stamp of approval before it heads to President Trump's desk.
The timeline, however, is hanging in the balance as hardline conservatives — like Harris — and moderate Republicans in the House balk at changes the Senate made to the legislation.
The Senate Finance Committee released its part of the 'big, beautiful bill' last week, unveiling changes that toughen Medicaid cuts, ease the rollback of green-energy tax credits and drastically decrease the state and local tax (SALT) deduction cap — a trio of alterations that are prompting concerns among a diverse group of Republicans.
Hardliners like Harris have been most incensed with the green-energy tax credits and what they see as insufficient spending cuts in the Senate's version of the bill.
The legislation, for example, appears to eliminate a provision that would have required climate-friendly energy sources to begin construction within 60 days of the bill's enactment to qualify for the credits, which was considered one of the most stringent energy conditions in the bill. Instead, the Senate's measure requires projects, including solar panels and wind farms, to start construction by the end of this year to receive the full credit.
After the House vote, Freedom Caucus members warned that they would not support a Senate bill if it weakened their core provisions, a warning shot across the Capitol.
In the lead-up to that vote, however, hardline conservatives were vocal in voicing their opposition to the legislation, arguing that they needed days — not hours — to correct their qualms. When the bill came to the floor, however, everyone in the group except Harris voted 'yes,' prompting questions about how long the group will continue its opposition this time around. Several members credited their support to last-minute assurances they received from the White House.
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