Republican Cheers Americans Losing Health Care in Deleted Post: ‘YES!’

As millions of low-income and disabled Americans are at risk of losing their health insurance thanks to the passing of Donald Trump and the GOP’s so-called “Big Beautiful Bill,” Rep. Derrick Van Orden (R-Wisc.) joined Republicans in celebrating one of the most destructive pieces of legislation in U.S. history.

Van Orden shared a post from an X account named Logical Luminary that claimed: “17 million people just lost health care. 18 million kids just lost school meals. 3 million Americans just lost food assistance. And $3.5 trillion was added to the deficit. All for a tax cut for Trump’s billionaire donors.” In response, Van Orden wrote in his since-deleted post: “YES!”

He later said that his remark “was supposed to be a response to a different text,” and added, “And, all of that is BS.” Van Orden said that he had meant to respond to White House Press Secretary Karoline Levitt’s “VICTORY!” post.

On July 3, Trump’s  massive legislative package passed through the House of Representatives in a 218-214 vote, two days after the Senate passed it. The bill will now head to the White House, where Trump is expected to sign it into law during a Fourth of July ceremony.

The legislation will make it harder for Americans in need to gain access to Medicaid coverage, requiring all supposedly able-bodied adults under the age of 65 to either volunteer or work 20 hours a week in low-wage jobs to maintain their insurance. The Medicaid provisions are expected to force over 10 million Americans off the program that has been a lifeline for millions.

When combined with the GOP’s changes to health insurance marketplaces created by the Affordable Care Act, around 17 million Americans are expected to lose their health care coverage, according to the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office.

Trump’s sweeping bill grants a permanent extension to his wealth-favoring 2017 tax cuts, and numerous benefits to other GOP pet projects. The tax cuts extensions are expected to increase the national debt by over $4 trillion, which Republicans have only partially offset by devastating Medicaid, the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), renewable energy investments, and other programs supporting working Americans.