Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Windsor Johnston.

Republican leaders in the House are scrambling to find the votes to pass President Trump's massive tax cut and spending bill.

NPR Scott Horsley reports budget watchdogs are warning the measure could add trillions of dollars to the federal debt.

They all say it would push that budget even further out of balance.

The bill would extend many of the individual tax cuts from President Trump's first term

and then also add some new tax breaks, so there would be less money coming into the government's coffers.

The bill would also increase government spending on

things like defense and immigration enforcement. And while there are some deep cuts here to

safety net programs like Medicaid and food stamps, those don't begin to make up for all the

lost revenue. That's NPR, Scott Horsley reporting. The President's spending bill includes the largest cuts to

social safety net programs in decades. NPR's Jennifer Lutton reports lawmakers from both parties

have pushed back against those provisions. The latest version passed by the Senate would cut about a

trillion dollars in Medicaid spending, mainly through new work requirements.

An estimated 12 million people could lose coverage.

The federal food aid program known as SNAP would shift some spending to states.

Katie Berg of the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities says that could let them shrink it or even opt out.

So this is really a proposal that fundamentally changes the structure of SNAP

and could end SNAP as a nationwide program.

More people would also be required to work to get food aid, including those up to age 65.

Jennifer Lutton in Peer News, Washington.

The man accused of killing four university of

Idaho students in the fall of 2022 has pleaded guilty. The case garnered international attention

...