america’s big, beautiful nightmare
by Robert Dean
It was the 4th of July this past weekend. What is there to be proud of as an American? That people died in flooding in Texas, that Florida can build concentration camps for children while leaving hurricane victims in the lurch, or that the “Big, Beautiful Bill” passed, which does nothing but rob people of resources while rewarding the rich? All over small towns and big ones alike, houses are draped in Chinese-made flags bought from Walmart, but no one sees the irony in that.
Most rank-and-file Democrats should be shot out of a cannon. Recently, the “party of the people” has devolved into one big shit head rodeo. The absolute ineffectiveness of the brand has gotten society here. With a 32% approval rating (Gallup, June 2025) and a base disillusioned by their failure to protect abortion rights, slash student debt, or rein in corporate price-gouging, their brand is collapsing. While the White House spins 'economic recovery,' 78% of Americans still rate the economy as 'poor' (CNN/SSRS, 2025)—proof that Democrats have lost touch. They’ve bled working-class voters, with Hispanic support dropping below 50% for the first time in decades (Pew, 2025) and Gen Z approval cratering to 42% (Harvard Youth Poll). This isn’t just incompetence; it’s betrayal.
And they have no one to blame but themselves. They should be embarrassed this is the America we’ve built from the turds of a dung beetle society. What is this bill doing? It’s a strike through the lives of working-class people, all while sounding like it came from a WWE heel. Some bullshit brought to you by corporate vampires lying about why you should never invest in garlic or stakes but always let them inside. All bloodsucking is good for everyone.
The Dems hand-wring while quietly signing off on a $886 billion defense budget (the largest in U.S. history), a 28% increase in CBP and ICE tech funding since 2021, and $515 million more in police grants just last year. They’re not spineless. They’re just extremely limber from bowing to donors and unzipping their trousers.
I have to address the elephant in the room, not to put too fine a point on it, because it matters: children lost their lives. It’s devastating. No parent should ever feel the ache of losing a child, especially like this. That pain is unfathomable. But it’s critical to acknowledge that Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) slashed about 560–600 NWS jobs—around one-fifth of its staff—and triggered 1,300 layoffs within NOAA, including hundreds of forecasters. At least 11 weather balloon sites were shut down, and key offices like the Storm Prediction Center were slated for closure, putting public safety at risk: the 30% funding cuts to NOAA and 17% staff reductions, as noted even by Musk's AI bot Grok, raising questions about the role said decisions may have had in the National Weather Service’s underestimation of rainfall and ability to effectively warn the public prior to the Texas disaster. This is shameful.
The reality of American life is that we’re dealing with a draconian system run by a game show host, and people are here for it. The Big Beautiful Bill is going to be One Big Fucking Nightmare once it’s put into practice. What Republicans have done to their base is nothing short of amazing. Billionaires are getting richer while basic needs become unaffordable thanks to cruelty disguised as “the common good.” How can we align ourselves against one another and for the companies we work with? Sorry, but record profits made while laying off workers are never acceptable. On one hand, there's a student debt crisis, and on the other, a labor shortage – where? What sector? We’ve AI’d our way out of an economy. And they’re cool with that: fewer workers equals more profits.
Let’s work our way back through the distinction between political theater and reality. Cable news isn’t informing us; it’s giving us character arcs. We don’t vote based on policy; we root for the guy who dunks better. Political goons fight culture wars while infrastructure crumbles. The bill is the actualization of campaign promises vs. policy.
Tax Cuts (The "Beautiful" Part)
Everyone dislikes paying taxes, especially business owners. The so-called One Big Beautiful Bill is a Trojan horse, stuffed with giveaways for the rich, thinly disguised as middle-class relief. It makes the 2017 Trump tax cuts permanent, including lower individual tax rates and increased standard deductions. Sure, it raises the SALT cap to $40,000 for households earning under $500,000, but only for five years, after which it reverts to $10,000. It throws out shiny distractions: new deductions for tips and overtime (capped at $25,000), interest on American-made auto loans, and a $6,000 senior tax break. There’s even a gimmick called “Trump Accounts,” tax-deferred savings for kids that mainly help upper-middle-class families. But buried in the fine print is the real payday: it increases the tax-free threshold for small business stock to $15 million per investment, a windfall for venture capitalists and donors. A love letter to oligarchs, wrapped in the flag.
What It Cuts (The "Ugly" Reality)
One thing we’ve grown to accept is that being cruel is A-OK. And this bill spreads cruelty along the slashes and bruises of American life. Garbage a-plenty in the hallowed halls of Washington. Everyone is a friend behind closed doors. Thinking the Democrats are on your side is total bullshit. The owners of this country wanted you to hate the guy across the street because, as Aldous Huxley said, "The perfect dictatorship would have the appearance of a democracy but would basically be a prison without walls... where, through consumption and entertainment, the slaves would love their servitude." And if you wanna go deeper, Tupac told us, "They got money for wars, but can't feed the poor.”
But wait—there’s more.
The One Big Beautiful Bill doesn’t just shovel cash to the wealthy; it punches down with precision. It imposes work requirements on Medicaid recipients, forcing able-bodied adults to clock 80 hours a month until they’re 65, or lose coverage. The Congressional Budget Office estimates 11.8 million Americans will lose Medicaid over the next decade. Food assistance takes a similar Mike Tyson-in-his-prime beating: 4.7 million SNAP recipients are projected to lose benefits, while states are forced to match SNAP funding, slashing $128.3 billion from the program, and tightening work requirements to the tune of another $96.4 billion. And if you’re hoping to claw out of poverty through education? Good luck. The bill guts existing student loan repayment plans—including Biden’s SAVE program—and caps federal loans for grad students and parents.
And where does the cash go? Straight into the usual sinkholes. The bill funnels $350 billion into border and national security over several years, with $67 billion for border wall construction and shiny new detention facilities. Another $144 billion goes to defense contractors for more ships, missile defense systems, and nuclear deterrence, because nothing says fiscal responsibility like stockpiling shit to kill more brown people. And for good measure, there’s a random $100 million tossed to the Office of Management and Budget “for finding accounting efficiencies,” which sounds like a bribe to the guy holding the calculator. It's a cash bonanza for the war machine, the border-industrial complex, and bureaucratic cronies, paid for by clawing food, healthcare, and education from the poor. In this country, if you’re not in the summer house, you’re in line for the poor house.
What’s sad is that when I write this, it'll fall on deaf ears. Trump’s army of assholes will never admit this was a bad deal. Instead, they’ll double down out of hubris and a sense of loyalty to a guy who could give a fuck less about them. Let’s not forget the propaganda we swim through daily—when Trump struck Iranian nuclear sites, they didn’t even do a great job. Pete Hegseth took umbrage at being fact-checked:
This is pure propaganda—“why don’t you support us?”
So, what did we celebrate?
A country where we fund barbed-wire-topped border walls while kids lose healthcare, where we give tax breaks to venture capitalists while teachers buy their own pens and paper. The flags are made in China, the celebration is hollow, and the dream has been strip-mined by the people we keep electing. The "Big Beautiful Bill" isn't legislation; it's a late-night TV product launch. We argue about the performance while they pick our pockets. We voted for this.
How's that?