Mrvan votes against 'reckless and cruel' Trump tax and spending cuts

Northwest Indiana's representative in the U.S. House had no qualms about voting "no" Thursday on Republican President Donald Trump's tax and spending cut legislation.

U.S. Rep. Frank J. Mrvan, D-Highland, said the so-called One Big Beautiful Bill Act is anything but beautiful, with numerous provisions that actively harm middle-class families, senior citizens, students, children, women and other vulnerable populations throughout the Region.

"I opposed this bill because all of these reckless and cruel cuts are in order to have a tax cut for major corporations and billionaires," Mrvan said.

The three-term lawmaker said the 869-page measure, which was signed into law by Trump on the 4th of July, will eliminate Medicaid health coverage for an estimated 200,000 Hoosiers — threatening the financial stability of Indiana's urban and rural hospitals and spreading the costs of uncompensated care onto everyone else.

Mrvan said it also reduces access to low-income food assistance services, shrinks eligibility for the Head Start early childhood education program, makes it more difficult for students from low-income families to afford a college education, limits women's reproductive health care choices, and terminates federal grant programs that would have helped create some 16,000 union jobs at a Whiting hydrogen hub and 1,100 positions at a solar farm in nearby Pulaski County.

In addition, Mrvan noted the plan increases the national debt limit by $5 trillion, and the Congressional Budget Office projects the United States will incur $3.3 trillion in additional annual budget deficits over the next 10 years because the spending cuts in the legislation come nowhere close to covering the $4.5 trillion in federal revenue that will be lost to tax cuts primarily benefiting the wealthiest Americans.

"This bill creates a division between the very, very wealthy and the most vulnerable populations," Mrvan said. "The Republican majority made a decision to prioritize their elite donors and corporations, and now our seniors, veterans, hard-working Americans, women, children and those yet to be born will pay with increased costs and possibly their lives," Mrvan said.

The legislation was approved 218-214 by the House, with only Republicans voting in favor of it and two Republicans joining every Democrat, including Mrvan, in voting against it.

It previously passed the Republican-controlled Senate, 51-50, after Republican Vice President J.D. Vance was called on to break a tie.

Mrvan said parts of the measure are good for Indiana and he could have supported them in a standalone proposal, such as the research and development tax credits for businesses that also appealed to U.S. Sen. Todd Young, R-Ind. 

At the same time, Mrvan observed: "There's got to be an equitable way to do this where you don't leave people behind, and you're not cruel to the most vulnerable populations and reward major corporations and the most wealthy among us."

"I won't back down when it comes to protecting access to health care, feeding the hungry, and creating more opportunities for work and wealth for everyone," he said.

Indiana Democratic Party Chairwoman Karen Tallian, a former state senator from Ogden Dunes, said Hoosier Republicans should be ashamed of what she described as "the worst piece of legislation to come out of Congress in decades" and "likely the biggest transfer of wealth from poor to rich that the U.S. has ever seen."

"I served with several of these now members of Congress during my time in the Indiana General Assembly, and all of them at least pretended to have a moral compass. Now, they gleefully cheer as they trade the lives of the poor, the children and the elderly for yet another (expletive) tax break for billionaires," Tallian said.

"People will die. Hundreds of thousands of Hoosiers are now at risk because they will lose access to food and health care. Predictions are that millions around the rest of the world will die because of the stingy, miserly cut to USAID. All so that a few Republican mega donors could buy themselves another yacht. Americans have always been generous, unselfish and compassionate. Apparently, our GOP legislators are not. I am disgusted."

In contrast, U.S. Rep. Rudy Yakym, R-Granger, whose 2nd Indiana Congressional District includes portions of LaPorte County, sees House approval of the legislation, which he supported, as "a major victory for our country."

"The One Big Beautiful Bill delivers on the promises made to the 77 million Americans who voted for bold change. It is the most pro-growth, pro-worker, pro-business, pro-family, and pro-America legislation of our generation," Yakym said.

"From making the 2017 tax cuts permanent, to eliminating taxes on tips and overtime, securing the border, unleashing American energy, modernizing our air traffic control system, cutting red tape for small businesses, boosting Made in America manufacturing, and achieving the largest reduction in federal spending in history, this bill puts America First. I am proud to keep delivering for Hoosiers as we work with President Trump to make America great again."

U.S. Rep. Jim Baird, R-Greencastle, whose 4th Indiana Congressional District includes Newton and Jasper counties, also considers the plan a "monumental win" for American taxpayers, farmers, border security and Trump's "peace through strength" foreign policy agenda.

"This bill ultimately fulfills many of the promises made to the American people. As we celebrate Independence Day and the birth of our nation, I am pleased to deliver these significant wins that ensure America truly remains the greatest country in history," Baird said.