Opinion | How Trump’s ‘Big Ugly’ megabill will hurt Americans

President Donald Trump bangs a gavel presented to him by House Speaker Mike Johnson of La., after he signed his signature bill of tax breaks and spending cuts at the White House, Friday, July 4, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)

With Donald Trump’s signature of his megabill in the broad daylight of the Fourth of July, there was no need for fireworks.

What was there to celebrate?

It’s now all out in the open.

The House approved the Senate bill, virtually unchanged in the light of day Friday. (See my previous column on the Senate vote here.)

And then the president signed the bill for all to see on the very day we celebrate America’s Declaration of Independence.

Irony of ironies. On a day of freedom we sign a bill that saddles us to a bankrupt America.

You may like: Trump signs ‘big, beautiful’ bill on US Independence Day

There should be no doubt who to blame when the ironic crud hits the fan.

That’s “crud,” as in my informal acronym for Trump’s legislative descent toward  “Cruel and Unusual Democracy.”

A stretch? But so is Trump mocking the Democrats who criticized the bill for hurting the poor. “Oh, it’s so dangerous, “Trump said sarcastically. “So everybody’s going to die. It’s actually just the opposite. Everybody’s going to live.”

Let’s see him say that to the people who lose their healthcare, or access to a rural hospital that’s forced to close. Let him say that to Medicaid recipients left with nothing. They won’t be thriving like the wealthy who got their big tax cut.

When the impacts of Trump’s legacy bill come back to hurt normal Americans, there should be no debate.

We all saw the process – Trump did it all without a concern for the majority of the American people.

The Republicans know there are dangerous things in that bill, called by MAGA supporters the “Big Beautiful Bill.” Normal folks know it’s really the Big Ugly.

It’s the largest tax cut ever to the wealthiest Americans and is sort of an upside-down Robin Hood. It takes from poor and gives to the rich.

That’s unusual in a nation that used to care for its poor.

But now under Trump it’s OK to be cruel.

The bill will cut health care and food stamps from up to 12 million in the US, according to the non-partisan Congressional Budget Office.

The impact of these cuts to pay for those tax cuts for the wealthy means that everybody gets hurt in the end.

The bill adds an estimated $3.3 trillion to the national debt already ballooning to $37 trillion.

We’ll all be impacted by a government that is going broke.

From Taco to Caco

When the Senate passed the bill early last week by a 51-50 vote, we knew it was crazy.

But there was some hope that maybe the House would stop the progress and make the bill less cruel. Maybe even delay the bill to work out the cruelty.

Some budget hawks, self-described Reagan conservatives were concerned enough to make a stink. But they gave in to the bigger stink of Trump.

All Trump did was play to the egos of Congressmen like Chip Roy (R-Texas) and Ralph Norman (R-SC). They went to the White House and for the price of a selfie and some White House gift shop swag, they caved to Trump.

If TACO – “Trump Always Chickens Out” –  is an acronym when he bails on tariffs, this was CACO –  “Congress Always Chickens Out” – when it comes to standing up to Trump.

But this is dangerous.

According to reports, Trump is feeling the expansion of his powers with the Senate vote and the recent SCOTUS win over district judges’ national injunctions.  Trump appears uncheckable. He promised the House hawks he’d fix concerns as his presidential power expands.  That would mean not abiding by certain laws on subsidies and spending.  Norman and others took Trump at his word. That’s how the president has the House in his pocket.

Kingly power

Growing executive power is what this bill is about. It’s the transformation of the presidency into an authoritarian kingship.

Over the weekend the New York Times reported on memos obtained through the Freedom of Information Act that revealed the Trump administration believes it is above the law.

The memos show how Attorney General Pam Bondi told tech companies they could lawfully violate laws barring American companies from supporting TikTok. It’s based on the Trump Administration’s belief that the president has the constitutional power to break any law as he sees fit.

This is a president who feels he’s a man in full, one who actually believes he can nullify any law. And apparently, members of Congress who should act as a check, seem to go along with this. When the budget hawks caved and voted with Trump on his bill they were playing along. If they have a problem, Trump will break the law for them and make it right in the future.

Add the Supreme Court which Justice Sonia Sotomayor says Trump has his favorite six “on speed dial,” and what happened to our government’s checks and balances?

Does that sound like America under our Constitution?

We know the Constitution bans cruel and unusual punishment (8th Amendment). But Trump’s megabill passing shows America is hurtling toward becoming a cruel and unusual democracy, a diminished America, under Trump authoritarianism.

Of course that’s a big 8-syllable word for another dreaded two syllable word that starts with “F.”

Add the thriving nationalism, racist xenophobic focus on the border and all immigrants, and the overweening pride in our military, and America appears to be on throes of seeing the “F” word come alive and apply to itself.

And I don’t mean “Filipino.”

Emil Guillermo is an award-winning journalist, news analyst and comic stage performer. He writes for the Inquirer.net’s US Channel. He has written a weekly “Amok” column on Asian American issues since 1995. Find him on YouTube, patreon and substack. See him perform live on the Canadian Fringe circuit at the Winnipeg Fringe Festival, July 16-27. Get your tickets here.