Senator Tillis has finally grown a spine to stop this. As has Rand Paul. What say you Hawley, Murkowski and Collins? It’s rough being the Senator of a rural state, isn’t it, when your leaders BBB pits the interests of the wealthiest 1% against the health and economic welfare of your entire population. Are you ready for the final decimation of the rural populations of your states?
As a NC resident I assure you Tillis has grown nothing. Sure, I’m glad he is giving this lip service but unless he actually does it, it is just like his votes to confirm the worst of humanity to cabinet positions. Unless Thom Tillis votes against the ACTUAL BBB we should stop all the “thanks for standing up for us” comments. He never comes through when it really counts and if he really wanted to help N Carolinians ( and by extension ALL Americans) he would find 4 more Senators to vote against it, in any form, with him.
Y’all are quick to succumb to Stockholm Syndrome if you think this has earned him any degree of praise. Stop thanking the terrorists for ceasing the beatings.
This bill is kind of like the tariffs. I’m betting they’ve devised it so that tax cuts & deductions kick in before people will see the true damage. After all, the mid-terms are coming.
December 2026 is when work requirements would go into effect. State provider tax was changed to a phase in of .5% annually until it gets to 3.5% (from 6%). It is more difficult for people to connect the dots when the damage is spread out over 2-3 yrs. OTOH, no one knows for sure what is in it. The Senate is stalling and dragging out voting time periods as leadership tries to rewrite pieces. I read the House is not happy.
The republicans have learned that when you have the passing of a bill in hand, one or two can oppose. Democrats have done the same, but republicans have made it a scientific practice.
That illusive, intangible and weakest of all actions: hope. That thing that priests et al have for their most vulnerable parishioners: hope. That word engraved on a dime store plaque to be hung in your kitchen: hope. Sorry, Sarcastic Prophet. hope means disappointment. I mean: Josh Hawley? You wanna put your eggs in Rand Paul's basket? Tillis looks like he has a spine but it's a convenient removable one, I assure you. Trump will come out to whatever state he is from and rile about the magats into a zombie lovefest and they will willingly give their loyalty to him again again and again.
There is an old saying, ancient Greece and Rome type of ancient, that while there is life, there is hope. When people give up hope, they often stop trying to change things. I don't have that luxury.
I am the mother of a 46-year-old man with intellectual and developmental disabilities. He functions at about the level of a 5-year-old. Medicaid pays for every service he needs now and will need to survive after I am gone. That may be sooner than I would like. I am 78, and I have ovarian cancer, for now in remission thanks to the researchers who no longer work at NIH. My husband is 83, so we have to do what we can right now.
I'm not optimistic in the least about whether this horrible bill will pass. However, the little bit of hope I have gives me the strength to continue to fight for my son and the millions of other people like him. It got me to spend time yesterday thanking Senators Tillis and Paul, and urging Senators Murkowski and Collins to vote no. Will it make a difference? Granted, it's unlikely, but when all is said and done, I will know that I did what I could when I could still do it. If everyone reading this, especially those of you in states represented by Republicans, picks up the phone to urge your Senators to vote no, it might make a difference.
I hear you. I am younger but I too have a son who I have been advocating for and am now guardian of who also receives SSI and Medicaid. Thank you for the poem. This is the hope I hang my hat on. Peace.
Thanks so much for writing Prophet. Those of us fighting for our most vulnerable citizens are legion. If we, and everyone else who hates what this administration is doing, stick together and keep doing what we can, where we are, with whatever we can, we're formidable.
Yes, his type of spine is removable. But I personally have no qualms expecting and celebrating transactional and situational spine making. I am not an ideologue. I am a pragmatist.
Hi prophet. I see by your additional comment below how much you rely on SSI & Medicaid. Sorry about your situation but…"Hope" regarding these Republicans is tooth fairy stuff! They will always disappoint, they are driven by greed, they are terrified of their orange pig god. I wish you the very best outcome hen this whole bloody mess is put to bed.
As for Medicaid, here is part of what he said while in KY after giving the usual needs reform, waste, fraud, etc. —
“When asked where cuts need to be made, Paul responded, "Everywhere… everywhere has to be cut.”
“If you’re an able-bodied person… maybe there needs to be a work requirement for Medicaid, and then maybe if you get used to working again, maybe you’ll actually go and work and get a job with insurance," he said. — WHAS, 5/12/2025
Back in the 1980-90s, prison building was the number one industry in New York State and as a result, new laws around marijuana and other drugs were created to fill those prisons, mostly with black skinned men from downstate i.e. NYC. For many people in rural upstate New York, those prisons meant jobs and they welcomed them into their community. For many residents who became prison workers, those prisoners were the ONLY black people they had ever personally seen, or knew. Now, many of those prisons are half full or have closed.
Now, just being brown-skinned could get you thrown into prison. For what? White supremacists are running the country and they are herding, literally herding, people into cages. For what? So the private prison industry can once again be a strong builder and maintainer of cages for people whose only crime was wanting a better life for their family. Wow, I think about my great-greats coming to America for the same thing and being thrown into prison for it.
It is a bad bill for everyone except multimillionaires and billionaires, and it is destructive to the infrastructure that keeps most of us safe and healthy. Congress bears most of the guilt for letting this BBB progress so far.
Agreed. As Amy Klobachar pointed out on the weekend circuit, the thing about all of this is that it is totally unneccesary for any of these programs to be cut. The ONLY reason these cuts are on the block is to protect and increase tax cuts which will primarily benefit people making ≥$400k/yr; 4 trillion dollars worth of tax cuts. So, this BBB with "lots of wonderful things in it" directly, unabashedly and very transparently takes programs and benefits away from poeple who need them so the top 1.8% can be even more richer.
It's good Tillis is not supporting this bill. He should be doing more to convince his collegues they shouldn't either. Taking a stand but not the punches is just cowardice.
To be clear: As this horrendous bill moves forward, it moves America to a time where there were zero social safety programs to address food, health and retirement insecurity. A time where there were not regulations to protect workers from unsafe working conditions. A time where the financiers and speculators could do whatever they wanted and could just drive people into bankruptcy. A time where anarchy was the rule of law, not the actual law.
Now add to that a secret police force (ICE) with no accountability and you have the makings of the Great Republican Depression returning again. The policies of this bill will destroy American society. It caters to the few and leaves crumbs for everyone else. If there is a free and fair election in 2026 where ALL ELIGIBLE VOTERS are allowed to vote, the blowback should be immense. I am afraid, however, since the corruption of the 2024 election, republicans do not fear losing.
Having recently been in western NC where Helene ravaged last fall, there's still plenty of damage. Trump 2.0 has done little to help. IMO, Tillis was already a lame duck. He has nothing to lose. I hope he remains tough, but that area of NC checks all the boxes for the negative impact this bill will render to those with lower level incomes. "App- a-la -cha" as those who live in it in several states call it, will return to pre- New Deal of the early 20th century poverty levels.
My heart is broken for America. This Bill's passage and Supreme Court rulings last week will combine to kill freedoms guaranteed by the US Constitution and 250 years of a democratic republic rendered into a facist nightmare. The irony of Trump wanting to sign this into law by July 4th is not lost on me.
More money? Ten times the money they had, you mean? Diverting that money from FEMA, btw. Good luck getting help in those states that need it most vis a vis climate change and climate disaster.
Oh, don't get me wrong. I believe that Tillis has done little to serve all the people of his state. But as the vile legislation cuts will rather quickly be felt, his political profile of opposition to it, if he continues in that, may be a net positive for him.
Over 50 years ago, I was a welfare worker who recertified people for Medicaid. I worked at an agency that had tremendous backlogs and an extremely poor telephone response. People on Medicaid who meet work requirements are very unlikely to be able to get leave from their job to come to the welfare office to recertify for Medicaid. That's how it's going to cut off millions of people. Technically they could stay on but in reality, they won't.
Trump's tax cuts were stupid to begin with and now with all the other stuff, even stupider. I hope other countries stop buying T-bills. Make our mega-billionaires pay for this crap. I'm very angry about the extra money going to immigration and jailing immigrants. And, I wonder how many 50-64 year olds will be able to find jobs if they don't have one now. Age discrimination is not addressed at all.
I have to admit, my initial reaction to this article was that the BBB is just plain stupid. It's a further stain and embarrassment on the US. We have idiots running the country, and they're running it into the ground.
A question—what do Republicans say will happen to all the detention centers once all “illegals” are deported? If the goal is to quickly deport folks, the useful life of these structures will continue…what happens to them? A waste!
Another thought—I seem to recall we lost a couple of fighter planes off the decks of our aircraft carriers recently. Let’s limit military spending to the amount to cover the replacement costs—less Hegseth’s remaining salary (he needs to be immediately downsized)
Where does this all lead? Why would anyone want to live in the world they are creating? Do the billionaires want to step over dead bodies on the street to get to their limos and see towns turned into third world ghettos, the economy in shambles? What will drive the economy? A lot of their businesses rely on consumer spending. Who will have money to buy from Amazon or get a new iPhone? (Imagine that!) Doesn’t sound too appealing, even to the power hungry billionaires.
45 Billion for "new immigration jails" adds to my horror about what's happening to honest, hardworking folks who've been here for decades, have committed no crimes, etc. The other secion about military spending, 158 billion, going to military contractors for, among other things, a "Golden Dome' which is the latest stupid, ineffective idea promoted by Trump... these all, added to the cuts for health care and food that so many foks are rescued by... it's all just horrible!!!!! I'm grateful for the couple of Republicans who've pushed back and pray a few more are willing to do so.
I do not understand why a few more million to the ultra rich is so darned important, when the ultra poor will have no medical care/medication and even less to eat. Time for a change, a BIG one.
Because all they care about is money and power not the people. They stole my Social Security so what am I supposed to do at 82y.o with no income. Guess I'll be living in my car until even that goes, then it'll be living on the streets.
Senator Tillis has finally grown a spine to stop this. As has Rand Paul. What say you Hawley, Murkowski and Collins? It’s rough being the Senator of a rural state, isn’t it, when your leaders BBB pits the interests of the wealthiest 1% against the health and economic welfare of your entire population. Are you ready for the final decimation of the rural populations of your states?
As a NC resident I assure you Tillis has grown nothing. Sure, I’m glad he is giving this lip service but unless he actually does it, it is just like his votes to confirm the worst of humanity to cabinet positions. Unless Thom Tillis votes against the ACTUAL BBB we should stop all the “thanks for standing up for us” comments. He never comes through when it really counts and if he really wanted to help N Carolinians ( and by extension ALL Americans) he would find 4 more Senators to vote against it, in any form, with him.
Y’all are quick to succumb to Stockholm Syndrome if you think this has earned him any degree of praise. Stop thanking the terrorists for ceasing the beatings.
I give no praise to him. Saying someone has grown a spine when it should already exist is not praise.
As someone else pointed out….Tillis’ spine is removable.
Exactly- transactional and situational. But I’m a pragmatist. If that means his spine is temporary and he votes no- yeah.
Hawley, Murkowski and Collins think that voters will forget their betrayal by the time re-election rolls around. It may not work this time.
It always works!
Nobody ever went broke betting on the stupidity of the average voter…
This bill is kind of like the tariffs. I’m betting they’ve devised it so that tax cuts & deductions kick in before people will see the true damage. After all, the mid-terms are coming.
December 2026 is when work requirements would go into effect. State provider tax was changed to a phase in of .5% annually until it gets to 3.5% (from 6%). It is more difficult for people to connect the dots when the damage is spread out over 2-3 yrs. OTOH, no one knows for sure what is in it. The Senate is stalling and dragging out voting time periods as leadership tries to rewrite pieces. I read the House is not happy.
The republicans have learned that when you have the passing of a bill in hand, one or two can oppose. Democrats have done the same, but republicans have made it a scientific practice.
I can always hope for better, for a John McCain moment, right?
That illusive, intangible and weakest of all actions: hope. That thing that priests et al have for their most vulnerable parishioners: hope. That word engraved on a dime store plaque to be hung in your kitchen: hope. Sorry, Sarcastic Prophet. hope means disappointment. I mean: Josh Hawley? You wanna put your eggs in Rand Paul's basket? Tillis looks like he has a spine but it's a convenient removable one, I assure you. Trump will come out to whatever state he is from and rile about the magats into a zombie lovefest and they will willingly give their loyalty to him again again and again.
There is an old saying, ancient Greece and Rome type of ancient, that while there is life, there is hope. When people give up hope, they often stop trying to change things. I don't have that luxury.
I am the mother of a 46-year-old man with intellectual and developmental disabilities. He functions at about the level of a 5-year-old. Medicaid pays for every service he needs now and will need to survive after I am gone. That may be sooner than I would like. I am 78, and I have ovarian cancer, for now in remission thanks to the researchers who no longer work at NIH. My husband is 83, so we have to do what we can right now.
I'm not optimistic in the least about whether this horrible bill will pass. However, the little bit of hope I have gives me the strength to continue to fight for my son and the millions of other people like him. It got me to spend time yesterday thanking Senators Tillis and Paul, and urging Senators Murkowski and Collins to vote no. Will it make a difference? Granted, it's unlikely, but when all is said and done, I will know that I did what I could when I could still do it. If everyone reading this, especially those of you in states represented by Republicans, picks up the phone to urge your Senators to vote no, it might make a difference.
A few words about hope from Emily Dickinson:
“Hope” is the thing with feathers
“Hope” is the thing with feathers -
That perches in the soul -
And sings the tune without the words -
And never stops - at all -
And sweetest - in the Gale - is heard -
And sore must be the storm -
That could abash the little Bird
That kept so many warm -
I’ve heard it in the chillest land -
And on the strangest Sea -
Yet - never - in Extremity,
It asked a crumb - of me.
I hear you. I am younger but I too have a son who I have been advocating for and am now guardian of who also receives SSI and Medicaid. Thank you for the poem. This is the hope I hang my hat on. Peace.
Thanks so much for writing Prophet. Those of us fighting for our most vulnerable citizens are legion. If we, and everyone else who hates what this administration is doing, stick together and keep doing what we can, where we are, with whatever we can, we're formidable.
Yes, his type of spine is removable. But I personally have no qualms expecting and celebrating transactional and situational spine making. I am not an ideologue. I am a pragmatist.
absolutely.
Hi prophet. I see by your additional comment below how much you rely on SSI & Medicaid. Sorry about your situation but…"Hope" regarding these Republicans is tooth fairy stuff! They will always disappoint, they are driven by greed, they are terrified of their orange pig god. I wish you the very best outcome hen this whole bloody mess is put to bed.
Rand Paul is often called “Dr No.” May the bird of paradise fly up his nose.
It is not decency or a change in his backbone that prompts his ‘no’ vote. The bill is not bad enough for his vote. This is ‘normal Rand Paul.’
• “The spending cuts are weak, they’re anemic, and they need to do more.”
• “Nothing in the bill changes the course of the accumulation of debt.”
• Paul did applaud the bill’s expansion of Trump’s tax cuts, which come to roughly $3.75 trillion.
https://thehill.com/homenews/senate/5366943-rand-paul-gop-megabill-criticism/
As for Medicaid, here is part of what he said while in KY after giving the usual needs reform, waste, fraud, etc. —
“When asked where cuts need to be made, Paul responded, "Everywhere… everywhere has to be cut.”
“If you’re an able-bodied person… maybe there needs to be a work requirement for Medicaid, and then maybe if you get used to working again, maybe you’ll actually go and work and get a job with insurance," he said. — WHAS, 5/12/2025
All these things are terrible about the "Big Beautiful Bill," and we're only scratching the surface. Michael Thomas posted yesterday about how this legislation is also a "kill shot" aimed squarely at the renewable energy industry. It's catastrophically bad. https://open.substack.com/pub/heated/p/the-senate-is-about-to-destroy-clean?utm_source=share&utm_medium=android&r=ftyx
Back in the 1980-90s, prison building was the number one industry in New York State and as a result, new laws around marijuana and other drugs were created to fill those prisons, mostly with black skinned men from downstate i.e. NYC. For many people in rural upstate New York, those prisons meant jobs and they welcomed them into their community. For many residents who became prison workers, those prisoners were the ONLY black people they had ever personally seen, or knew. Now, many of those prisons are half full or have closed.
Now, just being brown-skinned could get you thrown into prison. For what? White supremacists are running the country and they are herding, literally herding, people into cages. For what? So the private prison industry can once again be a strong builder and maintainer of cages for people whose only crime was wanting a better life for their family. Wow, I think about my great-greats coming to America for the same thing and being thrown into prison for it.
Jesus wept.
And political views.....That is coming soon with more regularity.
It is a bad bill for everyone except multimillionaires and billionaires, and it is destructive to the infrastructure that keeps most of us safe and healthy. Congress bears most of the guilt for letting this BBB progress so far.
Agreed. As Amy Klobachar pointed out on the weekend circuit, the thing about all of this is that it is totally unneccesary for any of these programs to be cut. The ONLY reason these cuts are on the block is to protect and increase tax cuts which will primarily benefit people making ≥$400k/yr; 4 trillion dollars worth of tax cuts. So, this BBB with "lots of wonderful things in it" directly, unabashedly and very transparently takes programs and benefits away from poeple who need them so the top 1.8% can be even more richer.
It's good Tillis is not supporting this bill. He should be doing more to convince his collegues they shouldn't either. Taking a stand but not the punches is just cowardice.
To be clear: As this horrendous bill moves forward, it moves America to a time where there were zero social safety programs to address food, health and retirement insecurity. A time where there were not regulations to protect workers from unsafe working conditions. A time where the financiers and speculators could do whatever they wanted and could just drive people into bankruptcy. A time where anarchy was the rule of law, not the actual law.
Now add to that a secret police force (ICE) with no accountability and you have the makings of the Great Republican Depression returning again. The policies of this bill will destroy American society. It caters to the few and leaves crumbs for everyone else. If there is a free and fair election in 2026 where ALL ELIGIBLE VOTERS are allowed to vote, the blowback should be immense. I am afraid, however, since the corruption of the 2024 election, republicans do not fear losing.
Having recently been in western NC where Helene ravaged last fall, there's still plenty of damage. Trump 2.0 has done little to help. IMO, Tillis was already a lame duck. He has nothing to lose. I hope he remains tough, but that area of NC checks all the boxes for the negative impact this bill will render to those with lower level incomes. "App- a-la -cha" as those who live in it in several states call it, will return to pre- New Deal of the early 20th century poverty levels.
My heart is broken for America. This Bill's passage and Supreme Court rulings last week will combine to kill freedoms guaranteed by the US Constitution and 250 years of a democratic republic rendered into a facist nightmare. The irony of Trump wanting to sign this into law by July 4th is not lost on me.
Aside from that Mrs. Lincoln, how'd you like the Play❓🤨
More money for ICE will be a continued building of the American Gestapo. We all need to fear this.
More money? Ten times the money they had, you mean? Diverting that money from FEMA, btw. Good luck getting help in those states that need it most vis a vis climate change and climate disaster.
Ironically, Sens. Tillis and Rand might stand a better chance of re-election if they continue their opposition to this vile legislation.
Tillis announced yesterday that he will not run for re-election. Hà-nothing to lose now so he thinks he can redeem himself!
Oh, don't get me wrong. I believe that Tillis has done little to serve all the people of his state. But as the vile legislation cuts will rather quickly be felt, his political profile of opposition to it, if he continues in that, may be a net positive for him.
No doubt whatever choices and decisions and announcements Tillis makes will be positive for him.
Over 50 years ago, I was a welfare worker who recertified people for Medicaid. I worked at an agency that had tremendous backlogs and an extremely poor telephone response. People on Medicaid who meet work requirements are very unlikely to be able to get leave from their job to come to the welfare office to recertify for Medicaid. That's how it's going to cut off millions of people. Technically they could stay on but in reality, they won't.
This is a really good point. Thank you.
Trump's tax cuts were stupid to begin with and now with all the other stuff, even stupider. I hope other countries stop buying T-bills. Make our mega-billionaires pay for this crap. I'm very angry about the extra money going to immigration and jailing immigrants. And, I wonder how many 50-64 year olds will be able to find jobs if they don't have one now. Age discrimination is not addressed at all.
I have to admit, my initial reaction to this article was that the BBB is just plain stupid. It's a further stain and embarrassment on the US. We have idiots running the country, and they're running it into the ground.
This bill is Socialism for the rich.
A question—what do Republicans say will happen to all the detention centers once all “illegals” are deported? If the goal is to quickly deport folks, the useful life of these structures will continue…what happens to them? A waste!
Another thought—I seem to recall we lost a couple of fighter planes off the decks of our aircraft carriers recently. Let’s limit military spending to the amount to cover the replacement costs—less Hegseth’s remaining salary (he needs to be immediately downsized)
Where does this all lead? Why would anyone want to live in the world they are creating? Do the billionaires want to step over dead bodies on the street to get to their limos and see towns turned into third world ghettos, the economy in shambles? What will drive the economy? A lot of their businesses rely on consumer spending. Who will have money to buy from Amazon or get a new iPhone? (Imagine that!) Doesn’t sound too appealing, even to the power hungry billionaires.
45 Billion for "new immigration jails" adds to my horror about what's happening to honest, hardworking folks who've been here for decades, have committed no crimes, etc. The other secion about military spending, 158 billion, going to military contractors for, among other things, a "Golden Dome' which is the latest stupid, ineffective idea promoted by Trump... these all, added to the cuts for health care and food that so many foks are rescued by... it's all just horrible!!!!! I'm grateful for the couple of Republicans who've pushed back and pray a few more are willing to do so.
I do not understand why a few more million to the ultra rich is so darned important, when the ultra poor will have no medical care/medication and even less to eat. Time for a change, a BIG one.
Because all they care about is money and power not the people. They stole my Social Security so what am I supposed to do at 82y.o with no income. Guess I'll be living in my car until even that goes, then it'll be living on the streets.