'Beautiful' or 'Ugly,' Trump's bill shapes battle for midterms

Debate over President Donald Trump's sweeping budget-and-policy package is over on Capitol Hill.

- ASSOCIATED PRESS

Now the argument goes national.

From the Central Valley of California to Midwestern battlegrounds and suburban districts of the northeast, the new law already is shaping the 2026 midterm battle for control of the House of Representatives. The outcome will set the tone for Trump's final two years in the Oval Office.

Democrats need a net gain of three House seats to break the GOP's chokehold on Washington and reestablish a power centre to counter Trump. There's added pressure to flip the House given that midterm Senate contests are concentrated in Republican-leaning states, making it harder for Democrats to reclaim that chamber.

As Republicans see it, they've now delivered broad tax cuts, an unprecedented investment in immigration enforcement and new restraints on social safety net programmes.

Democrats see a law that rolls back health insurance access and raises costs for middle-class Americans while cutting taxes mostly for the rich, curtailing green energy initiatives and restricting some workers' or-ganising rights.