Conservatives clash over cost, Medicaid cuts, and militarised border plans in Trump-backed bill

House Speaker Mike Johnson is racing to secure votes for a sweeping $3.4 trillion tax and immigration bill, a cornerstone of Donald Trump’s second-term agenda, but the legislation is facing rebellion from within the GOP’s own ranks.

What should have been a straightforward legislative victory for Trump is now caught in a tug of war between ultraconservative fiscal hawks and wary moderate conservatives. The deadlock risks derailing the first major policy win of Trump’s new administration.

The proposed bill seeks to extend Trump’s 2017 tax cuts, eliminate income taxes on tips—an election trail promise aimed at service workers—and empower immigration authorities with expanded, militarised capabilities. But its size and scope have triggered concern.

At the Capitol on Wednesday, Johnson huddled with holdouts behind closed doors, attempting to assuage concerns. The Speaker, flanked by allies, urged unity, casting the bill as a “bold return to conservative governance.” Still, factions within his party remain split.

On one flank, hardline budget hawks are warning of a fiscal explosion. Representative Bob Good (R-Va.), chair of the House Freedom Caucus, said the bill’s ballooning cost threatens the nation’s long-term financial health. “This package, as written, digs us deeper into the red,” he warned.

The Congressional Budget Office projects the bill would add nearly $2.1 trillion to the deficit over the next decade if no spending offsets are implemented. Many in the GOP hoped tax cuts would be matched by serious spending restraint—particularly on welfare programmes—but the current version includes only modest savings.

Meanwhile, moderates are balking at steep proposed cuts to Medicaid, citing backlash from constituents who rely on the programme. Representative Lori Chavez-DeRemer (R-Ore.) said she was “deeply troubled” by the provision, which she fears could affect children and low-income families in her district.

Further complicating matters is the bill’s immigration section, which would provide border patrol and ICE agents with advanced surveillance drones, tactical gear, and broad new detention powers. Civil liberties groups have denounced the measures as authoritarian overreach, while moderate Republicans are growing uneasy about the optics of arming border agents with “militarised tools.”

The impasse has thrown the GOP leadership into damage-control mode. “This bill embodies everything voters asked for—relief, security, and a stronger America,” Johnson insisted. But time is slipping. Trump wants the bill passed before the Republican National Convention later this month, a symbolic deadline to show he can deliver where Democrats failed.

Inside the party, frustrations are mounting. “This is a moment of truth for Republicans,” said Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-N.Y.), a vocal Trump ally. “We either govern boldly or cave to the same dysfunction that plagued us last time.”

But some aren’t buying the urgency. “I’m not going to be stampeded into supporting something this expensive without real reforms,” said Rep. Ken Buck (R-Colo.).

Democrats, meanwhile, are largely united in opposition, calling the bill a “reckless giveaway to the wealthy” and a “blueprint for economic inequality.” House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries described it as “an ideological wish list masquerading as fiscal policy.”

Johnson needs near-unanimous Republican support to push the bill through, given Democratic resistance and the GOP’s razor-thin House majority. Behind the scenes, GOP aides are working overtime to tweak provisions, offer concessions, and shore up votes before the floor showdown expected later this week.

As Trump watches from the sidelines, the question remains: will Republicans unite to deliver his first win, or stumble at the first hurdle?