Desperate Republicans Trying To Bully 'Vulnerable' Democrats Over Trump Budget

President Donald Trump and Speaker Mike Johnson
The GOP congressional campaign arm is set to launch an advertising campaign attacking Democrats who opposed President Donald Trump’s “One Big, Beautiful Bill Act” that dismantles much of the safety net—yet another reminder that the bill and its provisions are overwhelmingly disliked by the public.
If the bill passes, millions of Americans will lose health care that they currently receive via Medicaid, which was established in 1965 by Democratic President Lyndon Johnson under his “Great Society” plan.
On Monday, Fox News published the details of the upcoming campaign after being given a “first on Fox” preview by the National Republican Congressional Committee. Fox describes the campaign as “aggressive messaging” by the party.
“Out of touch House Democrats lit the fire of inflation and tried to slap Americans with the biggest tax hike in decades, all to fund their radical agenda. Voters won’t forget this betrayal—not now, not next November,” NRCC spokesman Mike Marinella told Fox.
But the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, the Democratic counterpart to the NRCC, sounded less than impressed.
"It's no wonder the so-called moderate House Republicans continue to lie about their Tax Scam: the Big, Ugly Bill is wildly unpopular with the American public and they know their vote for it will lose them their majority next year,” DCCC spokesperson Justin Chermol told the outlet.
And the data backs up Chermol’s assertion.
In a KFF Health poll released June 17, 64 percent of adults had an unfavorable view of the bill. Even more dire for the GOP, while a majority of Republicans—particularly those identifying themselves as MAGA voters—back the bill, support has fallen. For instance, when MAGA voters were told that the bill would cut funding for local hospitals, support dropped 20 percentage points.
Perhaps not surprisingly, even with the support of Trump and House Speaker Mike Johnson, the bill barely made it through the GOP-led House, passing 215-214 on May 22 in the wee hours of the morning. No Democrats voted for the bill, and two Republicans voted against it while another voted “present.”
Soon after, as the bill made its way toward the Senate, Republicans who voted for it began expressing regrets about some of the contents. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia, a prominent conspiracy-peddling MAGA voice, said she opposed a provision of the bill that banned regulation of artificial intelligence.
Republicans have mostly avoided direct contact with voters at town halls, hoping to avoid the backlash from the public on unpopular initiatives like cuts made by the so-called Department of Government Efficiency, but two Republicans did host events after voting for the Trump bill. That was a mistake.
Rep. Ashley Hinson of Iowa was drowned out by boos in her mostly Republican district after she said she was “proud” to vote for the legislation, and one constituent even called her a “fraud.” Rep. Mike Flood of Nebraska had a similarly hostile crowd at an event after the bill passed.
The NRCC’s decision to run to Fox for a puff piece about their shiny new ad campaign makes more sense in this context. Before it’s even become law, the public is opposed to the bill and passage in the Senate is not guaranteed.
Fox is simply one of the few media outlets that wouldn’t roll over laughing at the NRCC’s proposition that Democrats would face voter ire for siding with the public and opposing Trump’s “big, beautiful” mess.
Reprinted with permission from Daily Kos.
- Medicaid Cuts Loom As House Republicans Declare War On Red States ›
- How Six Republicans In Congress Will Profit From Broken Medicaid Promise ›
- 'No Better Than McCarthy': Would House Democrats Rescue GOP Speaker Again? ›
- GOP Senator: 'It Will Take A Miracle' To Pass Trump's Big Ugly Bill ›
- Why House Republicans May Still Tank Trump's 'Big Beautiful Bill' ›
- 'This Will Kill People': House GOP Guts Medicaid For Billionaire Tax Cut ›