Rockford clergy protest ‘One Big, Beautiful Bill’ to sway Rep. LaHood’s vote

ROCKFORD, Ill. (WTVO) — Rockford clergy members gathered Wednesday to protest President Trump’s “One Big, Beautiful Bill,” which is currently making its way through Congress.

The group, including members of Rockford Urban Ministries, No Crown Church, New Zion Baptist, and the Unitarian Universalist Church of Rockford, is urging Rep. Darin LaHood (R) to vote “No” on the bill.

They gathered outside LaHood’s Rockford office at 10 a.m.

LaHood praised the bill, saying it creates more opportunities for families by delivering “historic tax cuts and eliminating taxes on tips and overtime, to put more money back in the pockets of hardworking Americans when they need it most.”

The agenda plan passed through the Senate yesterday, and its amended version is now headed back to the House for approval.

The bill package would make permanent many tax breaks from Trump’s first term, which are set to expire at the end of this year. The legislation also includes no taxes on tips or overtime pay, the ability to deduct interest payments on some car loans, and a $6,000 deduction for older adults who earn less than $75,000 a year.

Opponents say the bill takes money from the working class, through cuts to healthcare and food assistance programs, and “gives tax breaks to billionaires” – an often repeated refrain denied by the White House, which has countered, “The One Big Beautiful Bill delivers the largest middle- and working-class tax cut in U.S. history. The President’s legislation will put more than $10,000 a year back in the pockets of typical hardworking families. This is the most pro-growth, pro-worker, pro-family legislation ever crafted.”

The bill also imposes work requirements for eligibility for Medicaid and SNAP food benefits.

The White House posted a FAQ on the bill, stating in part that “The One Big Beautiful Bill protects and strengthens Medicaid for those who rely on it—pregnant women, children, seniors, people with disabilities, and low-income families—while eliminating waste, fraud, and abuse. The One Big Beautiful Bill removes illegal aliens, enforces work requirements, and protects Medicaid for the truly vulnerable.”

Dr. Matthew Johnson, of Unitarian Universalist Church of Rockford, said, “In my faith tradition, in all of our faith traditions, we talk about justice, and compassion, and welcoming the refugee. What this bill does is it takes money that would be spent on food and medical care for children, and it uses that money to build concentration camps in the United States. That’s what it does. That’s wrong. It’s morally wrong.”

Johnson was referring to a $100 billion funding increase for U.S. Customs and Immigration Enforcement (ICE), $45 billion of which would go toward building detention facilities to hold criminal aliens caught in the United States.

Rep. Eric Sorensen (D) said if the bill passes, it will drastically affect his constituents.

“One of the first things that I did when this bill first came out, was I made a call to the Governor. And I talked with the Governor about whether or not the state of Illinois will be able to meet the supplement, if federal dollars go away. And the answer is no. We would be taxed into oblivion. There is no possible way that the state of Illinois will be able to pay for those things,” he said.