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Despite the narrow victory with the passage of the "big beautiful bill," the Republican party seems strangely joyless.
You have to hand it to Donald Trump; he did a superb job in holding the GOP's feet to the fire. However, the contradictions within the party remain evident and may ultimately undermine the founding principles of the Republicans.
For MAGA, it was a mixed bag; they got the money for the border and ICE. A few tax cuts were provided for the working and middle classes. However, these are not permanent cuts; the revenue deductions for the wealthy persist for longer and are more substantial.
As well, Congress broke Trump's promise not to touch Medicare and Medicaid. This proved awkward for Steve Bannon, Josh Hawley and other MAGA leaders to explain.
Hawley supported the Bill, which may suggest that Trump might adjust the legislation to satisfy his greatest supporters. He managed to juggle the coalition within the GOP, no easy task, and came out ahead.
The Freedom Caucus was the most challenging group to corral, yet Trump managed to keep them in line. Chip Roy, a deficit ultra-hawk, managed to vote for the legislation but expressed concern about the deficits that would ensue from it.
The Freedom Caucus wanted to slash more benefits, which then placed them far to the right of Trump's MAGA partisans. Remember, Chip Roy and Ralph Norman were supporters of Nicky Haley and may have used leverage to force Trump's hand on entitlements, but the budget might not be the final word.
Trump's majorities are slim, so he had no choice but to make concessions. He had one advantage: most Republicans did not want to be the one to cause the legislation to be defeated. Thom Tillis voted against it, as did Susan Collins, but the North Carolina Senator also decided not to seek reelection. Lisa Murkowski explained her pro-vote in such a manner that smacked of anything but enthusiasm or even support. She took one for the team.
Perhaps the most significant threat came from the smallest group of the dissenters, the libertarians. Certainly, Elon Musk was speaking to them when he suggested a third party. Rand Paul's father, Ron Paul, was the libertarian nominee in 1988 and was never particularly comfortable in the GOP. And the budget is not their only concern; they also detest tariffs. Rand Paul and Thomas Massie are two figures who just might take Elon up on his offer.
For Democrats, they held together, including John Fetterman, who had made MAGA-style noises but voted against the bill. For Republicans, their divisions are deeper and must be nursed. It suggests that the GOP cannot afford any more victories such as the big beautiful bill.