South Carolina lawmakers react as House approves Trump’s sweeping economic package

ABC Team, Associated Press,
Aptopix Congress Tax Cuts

House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., left, speaks in the House chamber as House Democrats stand to applaud him, prior to the final vote for President Donald Trump’s signature bill of tax breaks and spending cuts, at the Capitol, Thursday, July 3, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Rod Lamkey, Jr.)

 

(WCIV) — House Republicans pushed President Donald Trump’s $4.5 trillion tax breaks and spending cuts bill to final passage Thursday, overcoming multiple setbacks to approve his signature second-term policy package.

Trump is expected to sign the bill Friday at 5 p.m. ET, according to reporting from The Associated Press.

The tight roll call, 218-214, came at a potentially high political cost, with two Republicans joining all Democrats opposed. The House worked through the night and faced a final obstacle of Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries’ record-setting 8 and a half hour speech on the House floor to delay a final vote.

The bill’s passage brought a myriad of reactions from South Carolina lawmakers who championed its passage or remain skeptical of the alleged benefits Republicans have touted in the 800-plus page package.

Republican U.S. Rep. Nancy Mace, once a Trump skeptic now turned devotee, celebrated the bill as a promise to Americans.

“President Trump’s One Big Beautiful Bill means lower taxes, secure borders, and promises kept to the American people,” Mace said. “Hakeem Jeffries and the Left are flailing and failing. If you’re against this bill, you’re against America. We voted for it, we passed it, and we got it done for our country.”

 

 

Critical to the bill’s passage in the Senate, Republican U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham, the chairman of the Senate Budget Committee, claimed the passage of the bill will guarantee a brighter American future.

“We did it. Congratulations to President Trump, Vice President Vance, and their entire team for shepherding the One Big Beautiful Bill through the Senate and House so it can soon become the law of the land,” Graham said. “The One Big Beautiful Bill will soon be law, and Americans will be far safer and more prosperous because of it.”

 

 

U.S. Rep. Joe Wilson, a Republican from South Carolina’s 2nd Congressional District, celebrated the moment as a move toward a new American future.

“We are sending the One Big Beautiful Bill to President Trump’s desk in time to celebrate Our Nation’s 249th birthday and a new era of prosperity,” Wilson said. “God bless America.”

 

 

For U.S. Rep. Ralph Norman, the passage of the bill is a moment the country gets “back on track.” Norman, initially a skeptic, said Trump provided holdouts “assurances” that changes would be made to “getting permits” related to wind and solar tax credits, according to reporting from ABC.

“I worked hard to make this bill as strong and fiscally responsible as possible, but at the end of the day, I’m standing with the president and the voters who sent him to the Whtie House,” Norman said in a statement. “The House version of the One Big Beautiful Bill rolled back Biden’s Green New Scam and put strict limits on welfare abuse and illegal immigration. While the Senate fell short of what I had hoped for, I made a judgment call: deliver immediate tax relief now and keep fighting for the rest.”

Norman added: “I’ll keep pushing for fiscal sanity and a government that lives within its means.”

 

 

U.S. Rep. William Timmons, a Republican from South Carolina’s Fourth Congressional District, claimed the passage of the bill was a promise kept to the American people.

“Today, we fulfilled the commitment we made to the American people,” Timmons said. “The One Big Beautiful Bill is not just a legislative victory—it is a bold course correction for a country that desperately needed one. This bill is proof that when Republicans govern with purpose and courage, we win—because the American people win. Now we look forward to President Trump signing it into law and delivering a major victory for our country.”

 

 

U.S. Rep. Russell Fry kept it simple: “IT’S A BEAUTIFUL DAY FOR VICTORY.”

 

Republican U.S. Sen. Tim Scott, a devoted Trump ally, lauded the bill’s passage ahead of the Independence Day holiday.

“Great news for the American People!” Scott said. “The One Big Beautiful Bill is now headed to President Trump’s desk! This July 4th just got a little more special.”

 

 

The Palmetto State’s only Democrat in Congress, U.S. Rep. James Clyburn, in the lead-up to the vote, chastised the bill as a direct wealth transfer from the poorest in the country to the most wealthy.

“I’m in D.C. and I’m voting NO on Trump’s spending bill,” Clyburn said. “It hands nearly $1 trillion in tax cuts to the top 1%, slashes over $1 trillion from health care, and still adds TRILLIONS to the debt. This is a betrayal of the working class—plain and simple.”

 

 

South Carolina’s Republican Gov. Henry McMaster also chimed in, saying a new age was coming to the country.

“The Big Beautiful Bill delivers on President Trump’s promise to put America First,” McMaster said. “From securing the border and cutting taxes to expanding school choice and unleashing American energy — this bill will drive prosperity across the country.”

 

 

At some 887 pages, the legislation includes tax breaks, spending cuts, Medicaid cuts, a rollback of solar energy tax credits, new money for national defense and deportations. The bill does not eliminate taxes on Social Security benefits, despite what Trump says.

House Speaker Mike Johnson said the bill would “make this country stronger, safer and more prosperous than ever before,” while House Democratic Leader Jeffries, in a record-breaking 8 hour and 44 minute speech, called it “a crime scene, going after the health, and the safety, and the well-being of the American people.”

 

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EDITOR’S NOTE: The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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