Johnson backs reconciliation bill as it passes Senate, Baldwin opposed

U.S. Sen. Ron Johnson today voted to pass Republicans’ reconciliation bill to advance President Donald Trump’s tax cut and policy agenda, despite condemning the measure for adding trillions to the national debt.

Johnson, R-Oshkosh, voted to advance the bill in a procedural vote over the weekend, saying he was confident Trump would support his efforts toward fiscal sustainability. The bill, which passed 51-50 today with a tie-breaking vote by Vice President JD Vance, would increase the national debt by $3.3 trillion, according to the Congressional Budget Office.

In a statement on his vote, Johnson lobbed criticism at Democrats for budget deficits under President Joe Biden’s administration. He said passing the One Big Beautiful Bill Act will avert a $4 trillion tax increase and a default on the debt. 

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“While the bill is a step forward, we have only just begun the difficult task of reducing spending, and there is still a long way to go,” Johnson said. “A rigorous effort will soon be announced to review every program and every line of the federal budget, looking for ways to reduce spending to a reasonable pre-pandemic level. I look forward to being fully involved in that effort to put America on a path to fiscal sustainability.”

U.S. Sen. Tammy Baldwin, D-Madison, voted against the bill, saying she opposed “rigging our tax code in favor of the biggest corporations and ultra-wealthy – all on the backs of working families who are just trying to get by and want a fair shot at success.” 

She said the bill “guts Medicaid, kicks 17 million Americans off their health insurance, shutters rural hospitals, and takes food from families in need.”

“I am disappointed. I am disgusted. But, I am also fired up and ready. Ready to keep fighting alongside every Wisconsinite who believes we can do better to give hard-working families a fair shot and stop tilting the scales for the wealthy and well-connected,” Baldwin said.