Republican lawmakers who once backed President Trump’s “big, beautiful bill” are now turning against it, warning that the plan is a ticking “debt bomb” that threatens the nation’s financial future.
The massive budget bill, projected to cost $3 trillion, has sparked growing unease within the GOP. Some senators say it fails to control spending in any meaningful way and risks driving the national debt even higher.
“We’re having trouble selling our long bonds already,” Sen. Rick Scott (R-Fla.) said, citing rising interest rates and weak demand for U.S. debt. “We’ve got to live in reality here; we’ve got a fiscal crisis.”
Scott supports many parts of the bill — including border security, the military, and extending Trump’s tax cuts — but insists the country must face the hard truth. “Inflation is not coming down; interest rates are not coming down. That means we’ve got to balance the budget,” he said.
Right after the House passed the bill, the yield on 30-year U.S. Treasury bonds hit 5.15 percent — the highest since October 2023 — signaling growing investor concern.
Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) was one of only two Republicans to vote against the bill. He called it a “debt bomb ticking” that will sharply increase deficits now while promising reforms “five years from now.”
“Where have we heard that before?” Massie asked.
Federal Reserve governor Christopher Waller also expressed worry, saying markets want “a little more fiscal discipline” and calling annual deficits of over $2 trillion “not sustainable.”
Those warnings are now coming true.
Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) warned that Republicans will “wholly own” the soaring deficits if they pass the bill without big changes. “These will be GOP spending bills, GOP deficits,” he said. “There is no change in the direction of the country.”
Paul highlighted a proposal to raise the state and local tax deduction cap from $10,000 to $40,000 annually — a costly addition by House Republicans. He said the anticipated deficits will hover around $2 trillion a year for the next two years.
He also slammed the bill’s spending increases, including a $300 billion boost for the military and border. “There’s nothing conservative about this,” Paul said. “We don’t need another $46 billion for a border wall.”
Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wis.) called the bill’s deficit cuts “a joke” and urged Senate leaders to start fresh with a plan that brings spending back to pre-pandemic levels, adjusted for inflation.
“We’re going from $2.2 trillion in annual deficits to $2.5 trillion or $2.6 trillion,” Johnson said. “The goal should be to reduce deficits — not increase them.”
Johnson warned the bond market is already reacting badly. “They realize we’re becoming less creditworthy. That’s a very dangerous place.”
Moody’s recently downgraded the U.S. credit rating, citing Congress’s failure to address soaring deficits and interest costs.
He explained that every 1 percent rise in interest rates adds roughly $360 billion to $370 billion in annual debt payments.
Johnson said the bill’s Medicaid and food stamp reforms promise $880 billion in savings, but he doubts real cuts will be close to that. On new Medicaid work requirements, he replied sarcastically, “Whoop-de-doo.”
Even moderate Republicans like Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.) say the bill needs more deficit reduction. “We probably still need to do a little more work on finding savings to get close to deficit neutral,” he told reporters.
Senate GOP leaders face tough odds. Sens. Susan Collins (R-Maine), Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska), Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) and Jerry Moran (R-Kan.) oppose Medicaid cuts. Others resist rolling back renewable energy tax breaks.
With only a 53-seat majority, just four GOP defections could block the bill.
Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) said many senators want deeper spending cuts, but “the problem is that many of those proposals already face opposition.”
Conservative senators warn they won’t accept watered-down reforms. One said, “As surprising as it might seem, I think this bill gets more pro-reform, more conservative, rather than less.”
For now, Trump’s “big, beautiful bill” looks less like a triumph and more like a political and fiscal headache — a “debt bomb” Republicans are scrambling to defuse before it blows up in their faces.
