Democratic lawmakers decried it as the “Big, Ugly Bill,” but some members of the minority party are beginning to praise — and even take credit — for various provisions within President Donald Trump’s One Big Beautiful Bill Act.
Communities across the country stand to gain billions of dollars in federal funding from the president’s sweeping tax relief and immigration law that Trump signed on July 4. Several congressional Democrats are beginning to claim responsibility for provisions they deem beneficial to their constituents despite fiercely opposing the bill during its passage.
Though House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries has argued that passage of Trump’s budget bill will cost Republicans control of the lower chamber during the midterms, some members of his conference are quietly signaling that some provisions within the bill are popular with voters.
“House Democrats voted against the largest tax cuts in generations, historic border security, and safer communities — then tried to take a victory lap because they’ve got nothing else to run on,” National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC) spokesman Mike Marinella said in a statement. “That’s like lighting a house on fire and taking credit when the fire department shows up.”
Democratic Kansas Rep. Sharice Davids praised new federal dollars for her Kansas City area district Wednesday to help finance the security costs of hosting six matches for the 2026 World Cup.
“Just announced: New federal funding is headed our way to boost public safety ahead of next year’s World Cup!” Davids posted on the social media platform X.
The four-term lawmaker did not mention the legislative vehicle that secured the funding — the president’s “big, beautiful” law — which she voted against.
Davids referred to the legislation as an “extreme budget [that] hurts everyone who isn’t already a billionaire,” in a statement the day of her “no” vote.
“I’m frustrated — and I’m fired up,” Davids added in another post, expressing her outrage regarding the bill’s passage.
Davids is not the only Democrat subtly taking credit for the provision within Trump’s signature piece of legislation allocating $625 million in federal funding to help 11 cities across the United States host the World Cup next July.
Democratic Missouri Rep. Emanuel Cleaver, another Kansas City area congressman, has also claimed responsibility for delivering the federal dollars within Trump’s sweeping bill.
“After joining with representatives from across the country to push for federal investments that will ensure a safe and orderly event, I’m very happy that we were able to secure $625 million to support security efforts in the 11 host cities, including Kansas City,” Cleaver said in a joint statement with Davids on July 11.
Just eight days prior, the Missouri Democrat argued the legislation incorporating the World Cup funding was “morally reprehensible and supremely sinful,” in a statement opposing the bill’s passage. Cleaver cited the budget package’s reforms to entitlement programs and extending tax breaks to Americans of all income levels, including the highest-earning individuals.
Democratic Missouri Rep. Wesley Bell has also cheered a provision within Trump’s signature bill despite arguing the budget package will be “cruel” and “devastating” for his constituents during debate over the bill’s passage.
The St. Louis area Democrat has praised the reauthorization and largest expansion to-date of the Radiation Exposure Compensation Act (RECA) within Republicans’ budget package. The provision was a long-sought priority of Republican Missouri Sen. Josh Hawley who cited the RECA expansion as one of his reasons for backing Trump’s signature bill. The legislation would allow Americans living in certain zip codes, including those in Bell’s St. Louis, Missouri district to be eligible for compensation if exposed to nuclear waste.
Bell attended an event in St. Louis with Hawley touting the reauthorization and expansion of a fund for nuclear radiation victims stashed within the Trump-backed bill that he vigorously opposed.
He was asked to explain his “no” vote at the event in light of his celebration of the compensation fund for victims of nuclear radiation.
“You’re not going to always get everything you want,” Bell said. “And so there are some concerns and issues that many of us have with this budgetary bill, but at the same time, the folks who have been waiting a long time for compensation, to be acknowledged for their pain and suffering — that’s one thing that I can rejoice in,” Bell told reporters.
“This is one piece of that bill that I can be happy about,” Bell continued.
It was a notable departure from the House Democrat’s blistering statement on the day of the bill’s passage, which did not mention the RECA expansion.
“What happened on the House floor today will go down as one of the darkest votes in modern American history,” Bell wrote. “The truth is, most people still don’t realize how devastating this will be.”
We can do this all night…and day#HellNo pic.twitter.com/cQ9Om2P5OT
— Wesley Bell (@WesleyBell4MO) July 3, 2025
The freshman lawmaker has continued to tacitly claim credit for the RECA expansion over the past several days.
“For folks in North St. Louis, compensation for nuclear radiation exposure is long overdue,” Bell wrote in a post on Instagram Thursday. “I’ve said this since day one: I will not stop fighting until every family is compensated for their suffering.”
“Thank you so much,” a user commented under Bell’s post.
Spokespersons for Davids, Cleaver and Bell did not respond to the Daily Caller News Foundation’s request for comment.
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