The GOP’s Budget Hawks Will Bankrupt the Country, And Will Most Likely Hurt Women in the Process.

Republicans say they’re cutting spending to save the economy. In reality, they’re handing trillions to the rich—while stripping Medicaid, health care, and economic lifelines from women and families.

House Speaker Mike Johnson speaks to members of the press as he arrives at the U.S. Capitol. House lawmakers are back at Capitol Hill this week to work on the budget bill.

WASHINGTON — In a chaotic and ideologically charged display last weekend, five Republican members of Congress—Reps. Chip Roy (TX), Ralph Norman (SC), Josh Brecheen (OK), Andrew Clyde (GA), and Lloyd Smucker (PA)—temporarily derailed Donald Trump’s budget reconciliation package. Their justification: the bill didn’t cut spending enough.

After initial resistance and some political theater—Smucker’s procedural “no” vote later flipped—the bill narrowly advanced. But the brief standoff offered more than just a glimpse of intraparty infighting. It exposed a deeper, more cynical truth: the GOP’s self-proclaimed budget hawks are pushing a fiscal agenda that’s not just mathematically unsound, but disproportionately harmful to women—especially the most vulnerable among them.

The Budget Scam

The legislation, optimistically titled The One Big Beautiful Bill, is a prime example of fiscal dishonesty cloaked in the language of responsibility. According to the nonpartisan Penn Wharton Budget Model, the bill’s tax cuts alone would cost $4.6 trillion over the next decade. Its proposed spending cuts, largely targeting Medicaid, would yield just $1.3 trillion in savings—a net deficit increase of $3.3 trillion.

Even basic arithmetic reveals the contradiction: Republicans are demanding austerity, but only when it comes to programs that benefit working-class Americans. Their tax plans overwhelmingly favor corporations and the wealthy, with the largest benefits accruing to those already thriving in today’s economy.

The House Freedom Caucus, whose members led the initial revolt, insists it wants to balance the federal budget. But their priorities tell another story. These lawmakers show no real concern about the tax cuts ballooning the deficit, only about cutting government support for the people who need it most.

The Hidden Target: Women

What rarely gets said out loud in these debates—but is glaringly obvious in the data—is who gets hurt when Medicaid is slashed. Over two-thirds of adult Medicaid beneficiaries are women. These cuts aren’t just policy choices; they are direct hits to women’s health care, financial stability, and personal freedom.

Low-income women, single mothers, pregnant people, and caregivers disproportionately rely on Medicaid for access to basic medical services—from prenatal care and contraception to cancer screenings and mental health treatment. When Republicans cut Medicaid, they aren’t just trimming fat—they’re cutting off lifelines.

“The attack on Medicaid is an attack on women,” said Dr. Jamila Taylor, president of the National Partnership for Women & Families. “It’s an attack on mothers, daughters, grandmothers, and the women working multiple jobs just to survive.”

And it’s not just health care that’s at stake. Medicaid helps cover long-term care for elderly women, home and community-based services for women with disabilities, and critical postnatal services that ensure healthy outcomes for both mothers and their babies. The stakes are not abstract—they are deeply personal.

Misinformation and Moralizing

Despite this, Republicans like Rep. Ralph Norman continue to insist they are not cutting Medicaid—while simultaneously calling for stricter work requirements for recipients. “It’s being stretched thin by able-bodied adults and even illegal immigrants who’ve never paid into the system,” Norman said last week.

That claim is not just wrong—it’s dangerous. First, undocumented immigrants are ineligible for Medicaid. Second, among able-bodied Medicaid recipients under 65, more than 60% already work either full- or part-time. Those who don’t typically fall into one of three categories: they are caregivers, students, or suffering from disabilities not formally recognized by the system.

Work requirements have repeatedly been shown to do little to increase employment, but they do make it harder for eligible people to get coverage. That, of course, is the point.

“These so-called work requirements aren’t about promoting employment,” said Michelle Evermore, a former labor advisor at the Department of Labor. “They’re about erecting bureaucratic hurdles that reduce enrollment. It’s cost-cutting through cruelty.”

Austerity for the People, Billions for the Rich

While GOP lawmakers obsess over trimming Medicaid, they are curiously quiet about the $4.6 trillion price tag attached to their tax cuts. That’s not a rounding error—it’s the centerpiece of the bill.

“These numbers are not remotely consistent with fiscal conservatism,” said Douglas Holtz-Eakin, former director of the Congressional Budget Office and a Republican himself. “It’s political messaging dressed up as policy.”

Even more telling is where these tax breaks go. Corporations and high-income earners stand to benefit most, while the rest of the country watches the safety net evaporate. It’s Reaganomics 2.0, except the math is even worse.

Meanwhile, the bill proposes eliminating hundreds of billions of dollars in clean energy tax credits passed under the Biden administration’s Inflation Reduction Act. Ironically, many of these credits were going to Republican districts, where they were helping to spur job growth in new energy sectors. But the Freedom Caucus derides them as “green new scam subsidies.”

By cutting these credits, Republicans are effectively raising taxes on green industries—a move that not only undermines American competitiveness in a rapidly shifting global economy, but further erodes the fiscal credibility they claim to champion.

Wall Street Takes Notice

The market isn’t fooled. Last Friday, credit rating agency Moody’s downgraded its outlook on U.S. Treasuries, citing political dysfunction and a lack of credible fiscal planning. On Monday, bond markets reacted sharply, sending a clear signal: investors don’t buy what the GOP is selling.

“You can’t keep cutting taxes and slashing revenue while claiming to be a steward of fiscal responsibility,” said financial analyst Maya MacGuineas. “At some point, the numbers have to add up. And right now, they don’t.”

The Human Cost

For all the talk of numbers, the human toll is what’s most troubling. If this budget passes, millions of women stand to lose access to affordable health care. Maternal mortality rates—already a national disgrace, particularly for Black women—could rise. Families will go without care. And women who are already working two or three jobs will be asked to jump through more bureaucratic hoops just to keep their kids covered.

“We are not talking about abstract economics,” said Linda Blumberg, a fellow at the Urban Institute. “We’re talking about women getting breast cancer screenings, prenatal checkups, and treatment for chronic conditions.”

The cruelty is not incidental—it’s intentional. And it’s rooted in a belief system that views poverty as a personal failing and social safety nets as handouts. The GOP’s war on Medicaid is about more than budget lines. It’s about power, control, and punishment.