Trump's USA • Trump's budget

Budget approved in the Senate – Vance made the decision

The US Senate has voted by a very narrow margin through Donald Trump's budget proposal, called by the president a "big beautiful bill". This is reported by several media outlets after a process in the chamber that has lasted for several days.

It was voted through by the numbers 51-50 after Vice President JD Vance cast his casting vote. Since the Republicans have a majority in the Senate, the result means that three Republicans voted with the Democrats.

The budget contains some of Donald Trump's most important priorities, including several tax cuts. In order for him to be able to sign the almost 1,000-page budget, the House of Representatives also needs to approve amendments that have been submitted to the Senate. That debate is expected to begin on Wednesday. 

Trump's budget: Tax cuts, less for healthcare and no more support for green energy

Big tax cuts, cuts in healthcare, more money for the military and border security, and a shift away from green energy. These are the main features of Donald Trump's budget that passed the Senate on Tuesday night, writes the Financial Times.

Tax cuts cost $4.5 trillion over ten years and are a continuation of the policies that the president pursued from 2016 to 2020. According to the newspaper, the tax cuts will mainly benefit the richest 1% of the US. They are partly financed by a $1.1 trillion reduction in healthcare spending, including through cuts to the Medicaid health insurance program.

Subsidies for wind and solar energy projects that were introduced under Joe Biden will be eliminated, which has prompted the industry to warn of "a tax increase targeted at the fastest-growing sectors."

The national debt is expected to increase by $3 trillion by 2034, which has prompted, among others, Elon Musk to direct scathing criticism.

Analysis: The budget is beautiful for the rich – brutal for the poor

An even tougher future awaits America's poorest if the budget package that Donald Trump calls "the big beautiful proposal" becomes a reality, writes New York Times Tony Romm in an analytical text.

Shortly before the Senate vote, a Yale report was released showing that the poorest fifth will receive 2.3 percent lower income after taxes with this budget – while the richest will increase theirs by the same amount. Romm describes it as a hard blow to the low-income earners who voted for Trump, who promised them a better future.

"It could undermine support for Republicans and Trump, who as recently as this week promised that the package would benefit everyone," he writes.

NBC News' Shannon Pettypiece lists the winners and losers of the budget. The list of winners includes big corporations, high-income earners, fossil fuel companies and those who work for tips. In addition to low-income earners, she lists younger generations, healthcare workers and green energy companies as the losers.

“Increased tax benefits for corporations and high-income earners, while millions risk losing their health insurance and thousands of jobs in renewable energy and the healthcare sector will disappear,” she writes, adding that it will have “extensive” effects on the country’s economy.