by The BDN Editorial BoardJuly 3, 2025Updated July 4, 2025

Cruel.

There’s no other way to describe the priorities and policies of the Trump administration and the Republicans who support them.

The so-called Big Beautiful Bill Act (the ridiculous name given to a tax, spend and social services cut package to echo what President Donald Trump called the bill) that passed the Republican-controlled House and Senate this week will result in nearly 12 million people losing their health care over the next decade. More than 50,000 people are predicted to die unnecessarily each year because of provisions in the bill. Millions of Americans, many of them children, will see their food aid cut. 

Support for clean energy, which will help address rising utility bills and avert pollution that is worsening climate change, will be eliminated.

At the same time, the richest Americans will get huge tax breaks and spending on immigrant round ups and deportations will increase more than three-fold. Funding for immigration detention facilities increased 13-fold…..