Massie’s OBBBA Vote Undercuts His Libertarian Image

Thomas Massie and his supporters have long presented him as one of Congress’s leading libertarian voices. That reputation deserves scrutiny after his vote against H.R. 1, the “One Big Beautiful Bill Act,” which delivered the Working Families Tax Cuts, major welfare reforms, and $1.3 trillion in net spending cuts over the first decade.

Massie’s defenders can respect his rhetoric on spending restraint. They cannot ignore the record. When Congress had a real opportunity to prevent a multi-trillion-dollar tax hike, reform major welfare programs, and enact the largest spending cut of his congressional career, Massie voted no.

Working Families Tax Cuts Protected Taxpayers

The Working Families Tax Cuts permanently protected families, workers, seniors, and small businesses from a massive tax increase. Without congressional action, major parts of the 2017 tax cuts would have expired, raising taxes on households and employers already facing high costs.

The law:

• Made lower individual tax rates permanent.

• Protected the larger standard deduction.

• Preserved and expanded the Child Tax Credit.

• Protected the 20 percent small business deduction.

• Provided new tax relief for tips, overtime pay, car loan interest, and seniors.

• Restored and expanded pro-growth business tax treatment for investment, equipment, research, and domestic production.

• Prevented Washington from taking more money from working families.

Lower taxes are central to limiting Washington’s power over families and businesses. A vote against this package was a vote against permanently protecting taxpayers from a major federal tax hike.

Welfare Reform Put Limits Back on Federal Programs

The “One Big Beautiful Bill Act” also advanced significant welfare reforms across several major federal programs. These reforms strengthened work expectations, tightened eligibility, reduced improper payments, and required states and institutions to take more responsibility for costs they help create.

The law included reforms to:

• Medicaid, including work requirements for able-bodied adults and stronger eligibility checks.

• Obamacare subsidies, including guardrails to prevent taxpayer dollars from flowing where they do not belong.

• SNAP, including stronger work requirements and greater state accountability for payment errors.

• Student loans, including new limits on graduate borrowing and an end to open-ended Grad PLUS borrowing for new borrowers.

• Higher education financing, including reforms that force colleges to justify costs rather than rely on unlimited federal lending.

  
  

These reforms reflect a basic principle of limited government. Federal benefits should be targeted, accountable, and protected from abuse. Federal lending should not give universities an open-ended subsidy to raise tuition. State governments should not be allowed to shift costs to federal taxpayers through gimmicks and weak oversight.

Massie voted against those reforms.

The Bill Cut Spending by $1.3 Trillion

The strongest fiscal case for the law was the spending cut. H.R. 1 reduced noninterest spending by $1.3 trillion over the first decade alone. That made it the largest spending cut Massie had the opportunity to support during his career in Congress.

No single reconciliation bill can repair decades of overspending. Washington still borrows too much, spends too much, and runs major entitlement programs on unsustainable paths. But $1.3 trillion in net spending cuts is a serious down payment on fiscal discipline.

Limited-government lawmakers should recognize the difference between an incomplete win and no win at all. The “One Big Beautiful Bill Act” did not solve every fiscal problem. It did cut spending, restrain welfare programs, protect taxpayers, and move federal policy in the right direction.

Massie voted against it.

CFE Takeaway

Thomas Massie’s supporters can call him a libertarian hero, but voting records carry more weight than branding. H.R. 1, the “One Big Beautiful Bill Act,” delivered permanent Working Families Tax Cuts, major welfare reforms, and $1.3 trillion in net spending cuts over the first decade.

That was the biggest limited-government win available. It protected taxpayers from a multi-trillion-dollar tax hike and imposed real restraints on federal spending and welfare programs.

Massie had the chance to support it. He voted no.