Ahead of its final passage in the House, the big three broadcast networks all gave blatantly biased reports Thursday on their flagship morning shows about President Trump’s One Big Beautiful Bill. ABC’s Good Morning America, CBS Mornings, and NBC's Today all told the same story, one that devoted noticeably more attention to Democrats as they stalled on the House floor than to the Republicans fighting to pass the bill.
CBS Mornings was the most obvious when it came to expressing one-sided opinions. Featured co-ost Vladimir Duthiers came out swinging, opening with a clearly biased introduction to the Big Beautiful Bill:
While we're waiting for the House to finally vote on President Trump's sweeping tax and spending cut package, Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries has been speaking for hours. This is live pictures coming in right now. He is attempting to hold up that bill that Republicans are trying to push through. It calls for permanent tax cuts that mostly benefit the rich and cuts Medicaid funding for millions of poor people.
Outlining the bill as a benefit to only the rich at the cost of the poor was a gross misrepresentation of the facts. Many of the tax breaks and credits would benefit groups like lower income seniors, families, and people who work on tip. There was almost nothing in the bill that would have directly benefited only the richest Americans.
Duthiers, in clear criticism of Trump’s bill, referred to it as the “so-called Big Beautiful Bill,” a phrase heard in both CBS and NBC’s morning programming.
NBC’s Today would largely adhere to CBS’s narrative, but they added a new element, portraying Republicans not as fighting for legislation they believed in, but rather fighting to stay in Trump’s good graces. Correspondent Ryan Nobles reported:
Trump winning over Republican hold-outs for his so-called "Big Beautiful Bill” in the House of Representatives, sparking a record-breaking debate in Congress, with some conservative Republicans unhappy with Senate changes to the bill. The president getting personally involved, summoning the hard right hold-outs to the White House.
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Now set to become law, Trump's bill will make widespread changes to programs affecting millions of Americans, including changes to medicaid and food assistance, along with extending the Trump tax cuts, eliminating taxes on tips and overtime, and funding the administration's mass deportation plan. Democrats protesting, saying millions will lose health insurance while Republicans take a victory lap, with no questions about whether pressure from the top made a difference.
Nobles cited Representative Lisa McCain (R-MI), who expressed in an interview with him that she would not want to say no to Trump’s entire campaign, as well as Representative Tim Burchett (R-TN), who joked about his invitation to the White House, as evidence that Republican House members were too afraid to disagree with Trump.
Obviously, this was not the case, especially considering Burchett was himself opposed to the bill before receiving clarification from Trump, but both NBC and ABC would try to make this argument.
Good Morning America had correspondent Rachel Scott suggest Trump was trying to buy votes through autographs, pointing to the same video of Burchett he posted to his social media. On the other side of the spectrum were the hardworking Democrats they tried to highlight through favorable footage of arguments,
Across all three shows, Republicans were only shown arguing for the bill on the House floor a total three times. Today did not even show one. None of these featured clips showcased Republicans advocating for policy contained in the bill.
On the other hand, nine different clips of Democratic representatives were played across the three networks, many of which painted House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries’s (D-NY) attempted filibuster in a positive light. Segments showed Democrats arguing clearly on high costs and Medicaid cuts, as well as attacking the Republican Party.
Despite both the media and House Democrats causing a fuss to distort information and block the bill, the legislature passed just hours later.
The transcript is below. Click "expand" to read.
CBS Mornings
July 3, 2025
7:02 a.m. EST
VLADAMIR DUTHIERS: We've got breaking news from Capitol Hill. While we're waiting for the House to finally vote on President Trump's sweeping tax and spending cut package, Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries has been speaking for hours. This is live pictures coming into us right now. He is attempting to hold up that bill that Republicans are trying to push through. It calls for permanent tax cuts that mostly benefit the rich and then cuts Medicaid funding for millions of poor people. Nikole Killion is on Capitol Hill and she joins us now to talk about it. Nikole, good morning.
NIKOLE KILLION: Hey, good morning to you, Vlad. President Trump pushed Congress to get this bill to his desk by Fourth of July, and it is coming down to the wire as the House cleared a major procedural hurdle overnight.
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KILLION: After months of work in both chambers, President Trump's signature legislation is now poised to become law, with boosts to border security and ICE enforcement, increases in defense spending, and an extension of his 2017 tax cuts. That includes an increase in the child tax credit, a $1,000 savings account for newborns, plus no taxes on tips and overtime —
REP. JASON SMITH (R-MO): The One Big Beautiful Bill is for the people who don't have lobbyists in this town. [SCREEN WIPE] The folks who work hard, play by the rules, and ask only for a fair shot.
KILLION: — but it also implements new work requirements and other reforms for safety net programs like food stamps and Medicaid. The Congressional Budget Office estimates the Medicaid cuts alone could total roughly $930 billion with at least 11.8 million people at risk of losing their health coverage.
REP. JIM MCGOVERN (D-MA): This bill is a middle finger to working people.
KILLION: Now, if this bill passes, many of the tax cuts in this package would likely take effect as soon as this year, although some of the provisions, like no taxes on tips or overtime, are only temporary. Meantime, many of the changes to Medicaid and food assistance programs would likely be phased in in the coming years. Of course, the impact of this massive legislation will continue to be a key political talking point for both parties as we approach next year's midterms.
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8:01 a.m. EST
DUTHIERS: Breaking news, the House votes on President Trump's so-called Big Beautiful Bill, which cuts Medicaid to pay for tax cuts for the rich.
JEFFRIES: Every single Democrat stands in strong opposition to this bill because we're standing up for the American people.
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NBC’s Today
July 3, 2025
7:04 a.m. EST
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RYAN NOBLES: Right now, the Democratic leader, Hakeem Jeffries, is on the house floor speaking in opposition to this bill. Now, he's been going for more than two hours, and he can go for as long as he wants, but ultimately, he will not be able to stop the progress of this bill, its progress that has been painstaking for Mike Johnson, but will ultimately lead to him delivering a victory for President Donald Trump. The fierce fight over President Trump's signature policy lasting another night and finally coming to an end this morning. Trump winning over Republican hold-outs for his so-called Big Beautiful Bill in the House of Representatives, sparking a record-breaking debate in Congress, with some conservative Republicans unhappy with Senate changes to the bill. The President getting personally involved —
PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP: It's a great bill. There is something for everyone.
NOBLES: — summoning the hard right hold-outs to the White House.
REP. TIM BURCHETT (R-TN): I'm not sure if I'm going to the woodshed or not. I've been summoned by the president.
NOBLES: While some continue to object to the changes, Speaker Johnson finally getting the votes.
SPEAKER MIKE JOHNSON (R-LA): It's been a good day in a good place. This is the legislative process.
NOBLES: Now set to become law, Trump's bill will make widespread changes to programs affecting millions of Americans, including changes to Medicaid and food assistance, along with extending the Trump tax cuts, eliminating taxes on tips and overtime, and funding the administration's mass deportation plan. Democrats protesting —
REP ROSA DELAURO (D-CT): My house Republican colleagues, have you no shame? This $4.5 trillion in tax cuts to billionaires in the biggest corporations.
NOBLES: — saying millions will lose health insurance —
REP. HAKEEM JEFFRIES (D-NY): Medicaid matters, and it must be preserved.
NOBLES: — while Republicans take a victory lap, with no questions about whether pressure from the top made a difference. [TO MCCLAIN] Is a no vote a vote against President Trump?
REP LISA MCCAIN (R-MI): I wouldn't want to do a no vote and vote against President Trump, that's for sure. Clearly, this is his agenda, his legacy, what he ran on and what 77 million American people voted him in office for.
JARRETT: So, Ryan, this bill hasn't actually changed really since coming from the Senate, but the Republican hold-outs here have changed. So, what's behind the shift?
NOBLES: Yeah, Laura, and that's really what made the process so difficult for Speaker Mike Johnson. He could not change the bill, so there wasn't much room to negotiate, so what conservative Republicans told me is that they wanted assurances from the White House over how the bill would be implemented and then promises as to how the administration will cut funding in the future. At the end of the day, though, and I think this is important, it seemed pretty clear that these hardcore supporters of Donald Trump had no interest in denying him the bill that he desperately wanted and now it seems like it's on a path to be finally voted in.
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ABC’s Good Morning America
July 3, 2025
7:04 a.m. EST
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RACHEL SCOTT: The bill clearing a key hurdle in the House, a handful of Republicans switching their votes. Around midnight, the President posting on social media: “What are the Republicans waiting for??? What are you trying to prove???” Hours earlier, he met with a slew of Republicans at the White House.
REP. TIM BURCHETT (R-TN): Just leaving the White House. [SCREEN WIPE] President was wonderful, as always. Informative, funny. Told me he liked to see me on TV.
SCOTT: The President clearly trying to close the deal, signing merchandise and photos.
BURCHETT: Yeah, he signed a bunch of stuff. It's cool
SCOTT: The bill is the cornerstone of the President’s domestic agenda and fulfills some campaign promises: no taxes on tips and overtime. It includes roughly $4 trillion in tax cuts — mostly for the wealthiest Americans — and new spending on immigration enforcement. Hardline conservatives initially balked on the price tag. By one estimate, the bill could add $3.4 trillion to the debt over the next decade. It also slashes Medicaid. The non-partisan Congressional Budget Office predicts some 11.8 million Americans could lose their health coverage over the next ten years. Democratic Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffreys taking to the floor —
REP. HAKEEM JEFFRIES (D-NY): I’m on this House floor after 6:00 a.m., and I'm planning to take my sweet time.
SCOTT: — warning the changes to Medicaid will deeply impact Americans.
JEFFRIES: Shame on the people who have decided to launch that kind of all out assault on the health and the well-being of everyday Americans. That's not what we should be doing here in the United States House of Representatives.