Trump's 'beautiful' bill clears hurdle

A mega-bill central to US President Donald Trump's domestic agenda cleared a key hurdle Sunday, progressing out of the House Budget Committee after several lawmakers holding up the legislation dropped their opposition.

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Mr Trump is pushing to usher into law his so-called “One Big, Beautiful Bill” pairing an extension of his first-term tax cuts with savings that will see millions of the poorest Americans lose their health coverage.

But sharp divisions in the Republican Party have slowed the legislative process in Congress, with conservatives angling for much deeper cuts and moderates worried about threats to healthcare.

House Speaker Mike Johnson spent the weekend working to persuade rebels who blocked the bill on Friday. Republicans have a very slim majority in the House, meaning the legislation needs almost unanimous support to pass.