Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) delivered a sharp rebuke of House Republicans on Wednesday during debate over President Donald Trump’s flagship legislation, referred to as the “One, Big, Beautiful Bill,” as the sweeping measure moved forward in the House of Representatives.

In a speech from the House floor, Ocasio-Cortez alleged that the legislation would have widespread consequences on healthcare access across the country.

“Republicans have put this bill together, rushed it together in a matter of hours on the back of a napkin, shaking it walking out of the White House and brought it right here to this floor,” she said.

“They are defunding Planned Parenthood. They are ending tons of Medicaid coverage for 13.7 million Americans, including Affordable Care Act coverage as well.”

Ocasio-Cortez further claimed the legislation would restrict abortion access and roll back gun regulations.

“If you want to get an abortion and have a silver plan on a healthcare plan that you paid for, you will also be affected by this legislation as well,” she said.

“Also, allowing suppressors on guns to be deregulated to some of the largest amounts that we have seen since the 1930s, this is just a Christmas bill, it’s just a Christmas tree.”

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She concluded her remarks with a warning to her colleagues, stating, “When you wake up in the morning you will realize you voted to defund Planned Parenthood and to take away healthcare from 13.7 million Americans. And when this country wakes up in the morning, there will be consequences to pay for this.”

AOC: When you wake up in the morning, you will realize that you voted to defund planned parenthood and take away health care from 13.7 million Americans and when this country wakes up there will be consequences to pay for this pic.twitter.com/t0Q2zgQd3U

— Acyn (@Acyn) May 22, 2025

The bill, strongly backed by President Trump, aims to overhaul Medicaid eligibility procedures and expand work requirements for certain recipients.

According to the administration, the bill would require individuals enrolled in Medicaid to verify their eligibility twice a year instead of once, a change intended to reduce improper payments and prevent fraud.

The legislation also includes a “community engagement requirement” of at least 80 hours per month.

This provision would apply to able-bodied adults without dependents and includes work, education, or volunteer service.

As noted in recent reports from Breitbart News, Democratic lawmakers who have previously called for addressing waste and abuse in Medicaid have shifted their tone.

The outlet reported that “Democrats have said that the proposed cuts are ‘shameful’ and claim that the reforms amount to another attempt to repeal Obamacare.”

Rep. Scott Perry (R-PA), former chairman of the House Freedom Caucus, pushed back on that narrative in March.

“On Medicare and Medicaid, the president has said we’re not going to touch those programs from a beneficiary standpoint, but what he’s never said is we’re not willing to touch those programs from a fraud standpoint,” Perry said.

He added that this includes reducing improper payments and eliminating benefits for illegal aliens.

As the bill advances, House Republicans are also weighing action on abortion-related funding through the budget reconciliation process.

This strategy would allow the Senate to bypass the 60-vote threshold and pass provisions with a simple majority, including potential defunding of Planned Parenthood.

The organization’s latest annual report, titled “A Force For Hope”, was released over Mother’s Day weekend and showed increases in both abortion procedures and federal funding.

According to the report, Planned Parenthood performed 402,230 abortions in the last fiscal year, up from 392,715 the year prior.

It also received $792.2 million in taxpayer funding—an increase of nearly $100 million over the previous year.

While the Hyde Amendment bars federal funds from being used for abortion procedures, many lawmakers argue that taxpayer dollars should not go to organizations that perform abortions at all.

Breitbart News reported Thursday that the House passed the nearly 1,000-page spending and tax package, which includes multi-trillion dollar breaks and cuts.

The bill now heads to the Republican-led Senate, where lawmakers are drafting their version of the legislation.

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