Senate advances Trump's $2.1 trillion tax cut 51-49 after midnight drama

On Jun. 28, 2025, the Senate voted 51–49 to advance a 940-page tax-and-spending package dubbed the “Big Beautiful Bill,” keeping the cloture motion open for more than three hours past midnight as holdout senators negotiated.

The Congressional Budget Office estimates the bill would cut taxes by $3.7 trillion, enact $1.3 trillion in spending cuts (mainly Medicaid work requirements and food assistance), and increase the federal deficit by about $2.4 trillion over ten years.

CBO projects that 10.9 million people would lose health insurance under the measure, including 7.8 million losing Medicaid coverage due to new work requirements.

The Senate reconciliation version raises the debt ceiling by $5 trillion (compared with $4 trillion in the House bill) and creates a permanent $2,200 child tax credit (House: $2,500 through 2028, then $2,000 indexed).

Republicans used budget reconciliation and “current policy” baseline accounting—excluding the cost of expiring tax provisions—to bypass the 60-vote filibuster threshold and mask over $4 trillion in long-term costs.

Vice President JVJD Vance came to the Capitol to lead discussions with conservative holdouts and stood ready to cast a tie-breaking vote, though it proved unnecessary when Senator Ron Johnson switched his position.

Senate Majority Leader John Thune negotiated directly with Senators Ron Johnson, Mike Lee, Rick Scott, and Cynthia Lummis to secure the late-night votes, while Minority Leader CSChuck Schumer announced Democrats would delay final passage by forcing the clerk to read the entire 940-page bill aloud.