Will Congress Deliver a ‘One Big, Beautiful Bill’ for Americans? | This Week's Economy Ep. 111
From Washington to Austin, the battle is on between pro-growth policy and politics that punish prosperity.
Hello Friends!
In Washington, Congress is hard at work trying to pass a “big, beautiful bill” that brings together key parts of the Trump administration’s agenda—covering energy, taxes, immigration, and more. There’s hope it could deliver real benefits for Americans, including tax cuts, health care reform, and regulatory relief. Getting it across the finish line by the desired July Fourth deadline will be no easy task.
Back home in Texas, we’re seeing policies branded as “conservative,” but are not. A massive, California-style budget recently passed both chambers. What’s conservative about that? During this session, Texans were promised real property tax relief and universal school choice, but lawmakers haven’t delivered. There’s still work to be done to keep Texas a bold beacon of pro-growth policy and prosperity, with Sine Die on June 2.
I discuss this news and more on this week’s episode of This Week’s Economy. Get the full episode on YouTube, Apple Podcast, or Spotify, and visit my website for more information.
1. MEDICAID CUTS OFFER LIFELINE
In the News:
Republican leaders are hopeful they can pass President Trump’s policy agenda in “one big, beautiful” bill by the Fourth of July. A key component of that plan includes potential cuts to Medicaid, which has sparked significant opposition. Another proposal under consideration is adding work requirements for able-bodied adults on Medicaid—an idea the President appears open to. Sources: Fox News and Reuters
My Take:
Welfare Expansion Gone Too Far: Medicaid was designed to serve the poor and medically fragile. However, during the COVID-19 pandemic, the federal government under Trump and then Biden suspended eligibility reviews and massively expanded enrollment. As a result, millions of healthy, work-capable adults were added to the welfare program, stretching resources thin and drifting far from Medicaid’s original mission.
Focus Help Where It’s Needed Most: True reform means returning Medicaid to its core purpose: supporting very low-income families and those with disabilities who can’t work. That starts with reinstating work requirements for work-capable/able-bodied adults, giving states more flexibility through block grants and waiver programs, and expanding access to private-market options like direct primary care and no-limit health savings accounts. Instead of relying on a broken program, we should promote price and quality transparency through market-based competition.
Real Reform Can Revive the System: Trimming Medicaid’s bloated rolls isn’t a cut-and-burn approach; it’s the first step toward a more sustainable system. Today’s Medicaid overwhelms patients with red tape, underpays doctors, and delays care for those who need it most. Reform is essential not just for better patient outcomes, but also to rein in an unsustainable federal budget.
Related: Medicaid reform offers hope to patients in real need. Dr. Deane Waldman and I explored this at The Center Square.
2. ECONOMIC HEALTH CHECK
In the News:
The latest GDP report shows that in Q1 2025, real GDP, adjusted for inflation, contracted by 0.3%. The PCE index shows inflation rose 3.6%, with core inflation up 3.5%. In a recent interview, President Trump downplayed concerns about price increases stemming from his sweeping tariff agenda, though he did suggest he may reduce tariffs on China in the future. Sources: Bureau of Economic Analysis, CNN, and NBC News
My Take:
Stagflation Warning Signs: A shrinking economy and rising inflation are textbook signs of stagflation—evidence that our current economic playbook isn’t working. But this doesn’t have to be permanent. The challenges are serious, but solutions are available—if we’re willing to let go of failed policies and return to proven, free-market principles.
Tariff Uncertainty & Labor Market Weakness: While 177,000 jobs were added in April, a closer look at the labor market reveals growing fragility. Perhaps most telling: real average weekly earnings have fallen 2.3% since 2021. And that decline doesn’t yet account for the full impact of President Trump’s tariff policies, ongoing trade tensions, and the uncertainty they continue to inject into the economy.
Economic Solutions: Reversing course is possible. It begins with moving away from central planning and toward economic freedom. That means:
Reducing the Fed’s balance sheet from over 23% to closer to 5% of GDP,
Cutting federal spending and imposing enforceable spending caps with population growth plus inflation, and
Slashing federal regulatory costs by at least 20% then limiting them over time.
These steps would remove market distortions, restore stability, and support lasting growth.
Related: Examine the latest GDP report and employment data more closely to understand the roots of the current crisis and the most effective solutions.
3. TEXAS BUDGET & CLOSING SESSION
In the News:
Texas’ legislative session is wrapping up, but not without significant developments. The state’s 2026–27 budget increases by 43% over two budgets, well above the combined growth of population and inflation, mirroring the high-spending habits of states like California. Meanwhile, lawmakers are also considering a controversial bill requiring app stores like Google and Apple to verify users’ ages, link minors’ accounts to their parents, and restrict access to apps unless parental consent is provided. Sources: KUT News, Texans for Fiscal Responsibility, SB 2420 and HB 4901.
My Take:
What’s Conservative About This Legislature? This session, Texas lawmakers passed a slate of measures that are anything but conservative: unchecked spending, high property taxes, corporate handouts, ballooning constitutional earmarks, minimal school choice, and expanded Medicaid. They prioritized government growth over market freedom and bureaucratic control over parental choice. True prosperity comes when leaders empower people, not government.
A Budget Texans Don’t Deserve: The bloated 2026–27 budget passage was the most disappointing act. It funnels billions of dollars in giveaways to special interests, blows past the state’s spending cap by billions, and adds more than $50 billion in new spending. Just as telling is what it didn’t do: it omitted DOGE-type cuts, lacked pro-growth reforms, and strayed far from any definition of fiscal conservatism. Texans deserved a responsible, limited government budget, not this.
Don’t Let This Slide: Senate Bill 2420 represents a dangerous overreach. The government sets a precedent that threatens privacy, encourages censorship, and undermines parental authority by mandating age verification and app restrictions. If the state can control what apps children use, how long before it applies that power to adults? These bills are harmful to civil liberties, bad for innovation, and set a troubling precedent for government interference in private life.
Related: If Texas wants to keep leading the nation, lawmakers must remember what made this state great: faith, family, and free markets. Also, check out my recent writings on the Texas budget and age verification laws.
4. PRO-PROFIT, PRO-PROSPERITY
In the News:
From statehouses to Washington, D.C., lawmakers increasingly treat company profits as something to be criticized or curtailed. In Louisiana, new regulations aim to limit insurance rates. Senators are pushing to cap pharmaceutical prices. Nationwide, there's a growing push for more regulation, price controls, and higher business taxes. Adding to the complexity are companies that accept government subsidies on one hand while raising prices for consumers on the other, as seen during the recent egg shortage. Sources: Louisiana Illuminator, Politico, and The Hill
My Take:
Profit Is Part of the Solution: The growing tendency to attack profit, even among conservatives, is troubling. Policies like price caps, excessive regulation, and targeted taxes send the message that profit itself is a problem. But that’s backward thinking. Profit isn’t exploitation, it’s a sign that value is being created. Unfortunately, instead of addressing the root causes of high costs—such as overregulation and lawsuit abuse—some lawmakers focus on penalizing businesses.
Subsidies and Profits: The egg shortage highlights the tension between subsidies and profit. Industry leaders blamed soaring prices on repeated avian flu outbreaks. Yet Cal-Maine—the nation’s largest egg producer—and other ag giants reported record profits while receiving millions in taxpayer-funded federal relief. This creates a distorted playing field. Companies shouldn’t be able to receive taxpayer bailouts and then hike prices at the expense of American consumers.
Pathway to Prosperity: If we want a stronger economy, more jobs, and greater opportunity, we must stop vilifying success. That means fixing what’s broken—ending lawsuit abuse, improving education, empowering parents, ending corporate handouts, and encouraging true market competition. The government shouldn’t pick winners and losers or stifle innovation through excessive red tape. Profits aren’t the problem, they are a critical part of the solution—and a necessary engine for long-term prosperity.
Related: Why are lawmakers more focused on capping profits than solving real problems? I explain in my latest article at the Pelican Institute.
5. PUTTING REINS ON REGULATION
In the News:
Conservative Republicans are close to adding regulatory review powers to the GOP’s legislative package. Modeled on the REINS Act, this proposal would allow Congress to approve or block major executive branch regulations, enabling lawmakers to scale back federal rules through the remainder of the Trump administration. Source: Politico
My Take:
The Hidden Cost of Regulation: Regulations often function like hidden taxes. Everyone feels them, but they are rarely seen. Many are imposed without a direct vote from Congress, as executive agencies take the lead. Restoring congressional oversight is a necessary step toward accountability.
Admitting There’s a Problem: This move signals that Congress finally acknowledges its overregulation problem. Repealing outdated or excessive rules is essential, but so is establishing a regulatory budget to cap the growth of new ones.
A Better Path Forward: Limiting regulation, promoting individual and state-level autonomy, and pursuing pro-growth policies will strengthen the economy, safeguard freedoms, and improve access to quality, affordable services.
Related: What is the REINS Act? It's not just on Congress’s radar—states are exploring it too. I discussed this with Dr. Adam Milsap in a recent episode of Let People Prosper.
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God bless you, and let people prosper!
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