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Is Trump’s Big Bill Beautiful—Or a Disaster? Plus. . .
It’s Monday, July 7. This is The Front Page, your daily window into the world of The Free Press—and our take on the world at large. Today: Will NYC mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani survive fresh scrutiny; inside a grassroots effort to sabotage ICE; Salena Zito and Peter Savodnik talk Trump on the latest Free Press livestream. And much more.
But first: Newt Gingrich, Larry Summers, Tyler Cowen, Jason Furman, and others on what they think of the Republicans’ megabill.
America had an expensive Fourth of July this year. No, not because the prices of hot dogs have gone up. But because on Friday afternoon, while most of America was grilling, President Donald Trump signed into law the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA).
It’s a behemoth of a bill that, among other changes, extends the 2017 Trump tax cuts, adds work requirements to Medicaid, introduces tax deductions for tips and overtime, and increases spending on defense and border security. It will also, according to the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office, add some $3 trillion to the public debt. (That’s a lot.) Republicans say the legislation will help trigger a new American golden age. Democrats say Trump is robbing from the poor to pay the rich. (And Elon Musk is so angry at the hit to the nation’s finances that he says he’s starting a new political party.)
Americans might have tuned out of the debates over the legislation on its long and winding path into law. But as its wide-ranging changes come into effect—and with both parties looking to use it against each other ahead of next year’s midterms—they are soon going to be hearing a lot more about the OBBBA.
So what does the bill do—and is it really beautiful? Or beastly? We asked a wide range of economic and political commentators for their take. And we got a wide range of responses. Larry Summers says it is “grotesque.” Newt Gingrich calls it “an amazing achievement.” Tyler Cowen thinks it is “one of the most radical experiments in fiscal policy in my lifetime.” Click below to read their full takes, as well as the views of Jason Furman, Kyla Scanlon, Reihan Salam, Christopher Caldwell, and others.
—The Editors
Tune In: Salena Zito on the Near Assassination of President Trump
A year ago this month, Salena Zito was just four feet away from Trump when an assassin’s bullet grazed his ear at a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania. That same day, Salena wrote an extraordinary first-hand account of that tragedy, in which one member of the audience was killed, for The Free Press. Now, 12 months on, Salena has written a book, Butler: The Untold Story of the Near Assassination of Donald Trump and the Fight for America’s Heartland. Salena will be joining Peter Savodnik for a livestream chat about her new book at 4 p.m. Eastern time today. Join the conversation with Salena and Peter about that dramatic day in Butler, and everything that followed. Click here to tune in.
As you probably noticed, we celebrated America’s birthday in a big way over the past week. As well as the Fourth of July stories we published, we announced our yearlong celebration of the country turning 250 in 2026. You can read all about that project here.
People look on as officials search for survivors near Camp Mystic, the site of where more than 20 girls went missing after flash flooding in Hunt, Texas, on July 5, 2025. (Photo by Ronaldo Schemidt via Getty Images)Hundreds of state and federal rescue workers continued their search for survivors after devastating floods in central Texas over the weekend. The death toll rose to 81 as of Sunday evening, as 10 campers from a Christian girls camp along the Guadalupe River remained unaccounted for. Texas governor Greg Abbott called the situation “nothing short of horrific.”
Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu is set to visit the White House today, where he will discuss Israel’s potential ceasefire deal with Hamas with Trump and other senior officials. The deal involves Hamas’s release of Israeli hostages and would potentially end the war in Gaza. Israel has also sent a delegation to Qatar to discuss the truce. Netanyahu and Trump are also expected to discuss the joint strikes on Iran.
Elon Musk announced that he formed a new political party, dubbed the “America Party,” a reaction spurred by Musk’s opposition to the spending bill passed by the GOP. “When it comes to bankrupting our country with waste & graft, we live in a one-party system, not a democracy,” wrote Musk on X. “Today, the America Party is formed to give you back your freedom.”
The Trump administration moved closer to formalizing a trade deal with the European Union that would spare the continent from 50 percent tariffs, just days before Trump’s imposed deadline of July 9. Negotiators, sidestepping the most contentious parts of a potential deal, sought to assemble a patchwork deal before holding more comprehensive discussions.
Columbia University is reportedly considering a deal with the Trump administration that would restore some of its federal funding. The school has been in a months-long battle with officials, who cancelled $400 million in federal grants in March.
Trump officials reassured organizers of the FIFA World Cup—set to be held across the U.S. in June 2026—that immigration officers would have only a routine presence at the events, walking back previous comments that “suited and booted” immigration agents would be present at all matches. The head of Trump’s World Cup task force, Andrew Giuliani, said that “one of the goals of the task force is to ensure that international fans can be a part of this historic sporting event.”
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It’s Monday, July 7. This is The Front Page, your daily window into the world of The Free Press—and our take on the world at large. Today: Will NYC mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani survive fresh scrutiny; inside a grassroots effort to sabotage ICE; Salena Zito and Peter Savodnik talk Trump on the latest Free Press livestream. And much more.
But first: Newt Gingrich, Larry Summers, Tyler Cowen, Jason Furman, and others on what they think of the Republicans’ megabill.
America had an expensive Fourth of July this year. No, not because the prices of hot dogs have gone up. But because on Friday afternoon, while most of America was grilling, President Donald Trump signed into law the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA).
It’s a behemoth of a bill that, among other changes, extends the 2017 Trump tax cuts, adds work requirements to Medicaid, introduces tax deductions for tips and overtime, and increases spending on defense and border security. It will also, according to the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office, add some $3 trillion to the public debt. (That’s a lot.) Republicans say the legislation will help trigger a new American golden age. Democrats say Trump is robbing from the poor to pay the rich. (And Elon Musk is so angry at the hit to the nation’s finances that he says he’s starting a new political party.)
Americans might have tuned out of the debates over the legislation on its long and winding path into law. But as its wide-ranging changes come into effect—and with both parties looking to use it against each other ahead of next year’s midterms—they are soon going to be hearing a lot more about the OBBBA.
So what does the bill do—and is it really beautiful? Or beastly? We asked a wide range of economic and political commentators for their take. And we got a wide range of responses. Larry Summers says it is “grotesque.” Newt Gingrich calls it “an amazing achievement.” Tyler Cowen thinks it is “one of the most radical experiments in fiscal policy in my lifetime.” Click below to read their full takes, as well as the views of Jason Furman, Kyla Scanlon, Reihan Salam, Christopher Caldwell, and others.
—The Editors
Tune In: Salena Zito on the Near Assassination of President Trump
A year ago this month, Salena Zito was just four feet away from Trump when an assassin’s bullet grazed his ear at a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania. That same day, Salena wrote an extraordinary first-hand account of that tragedy, in which one member of the audience was killed, for The Free Press. Now, 12 months on, Salena has written a book, Butler: The Untold Story of the Near Assassination of Donald Trump and the Fight for America’s Heartland. Salena will be joining Peter Savodnik for a livestream chat about her new book at 4 p.m. Eastern time today. Join the conversation with Salena and Peter about that dramatic day in Butler, and everything that followed. Click here to tune in.
As you probably noticed, we celebrated America’s birthday in a big way over the past week. As well as the Fourth of July stories we published, we announced our yearlong celebration of the country turning 250 in 2026. You can read all about that project here.
People look on as officials search for survivors near Camp Mystic, the site of where more than 20 girls went missing after flash flooding in Hunt, Texas, on July 5, 2025. (Photo by Ronaldo Schemidt via Getty Images)Hundreds of state and federal rescue workers continued their search for survivors after devastating floods in central Texas over the weekend. The death toll rose to 81 as of Sunday evening, as 10 campers from a Christian girls camp along the Guadalupe River remained unaccounted for. Texas governor Greg Abbott called the situation “nothing short of horrific.”
Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu is set to visit the White House today, where he will discuss Israel’s potential ceasefire deal with Hamas with Trump and other senior officials. The deal involves Hamas’s release of Israeli hostages and would potentially end the war in Gaza. Israel has also sent a delegation to Qatar to discuss the truce. Netanyahu and Trump are also expected to discuss the joint strikes on Iran.
Elon Musk announced that he formed a new political party, dubbed the “America Party,” a reaction spurred by Musk’s opposition to the spending bill passed by the GOP. “When it comes to bankrupting our country with waste & graft, we live in a one-party system, not a democracy,” wrote Musk on X. “Today, the America Party is formed to give you back your freedom.”
The Trump administration moved closer to formalizing a trade deal with the European Union that would spare the continent from 50 percent tariffs, just days before Trump’s imposed deadline of July 9. Negotiators, sidestepping the most contentious parts of a potential deal, sought to assemble a patchwork deal before holding more comprehensive discussions.
Columbia University is reportedly considering a deal with the Trump administration that would restore some of its federal funding. The school has been in a months-long battle with officials, who cancelled $400 million in federal grants in March.
Trump officials reassured organizers of the FIFA World Cup—set to be held across the U.S. in June 2026—that immigration officers would have only a routine presence at the events, walking back previous comments that “suited and booted” immigration agents would be present at all matches. The head of Trump’s World Cup task force, Andrew Giuliani, said that “one of the goals of the task force is to ensure that international fans can be a part of this historic sporting event.”