Catholic bishops, Evangelical Latino group oppose Trump’s Big Beautiful Bill
A coalition of Catholic bishops and Evangelical Latino leaders has formally opposed President Donald Trump’s “One Big Beautiful Bill,” warning that its provisions on immigration and artificial intelligence threaten both moral values and civil liberties.
In a joint letter to the U.S. Senate, the faith leaders called on lawmakers to reject the legislation, citing its potential to harm immigrant families, weaken poverty assistance programs and erode states’ rights.
Signed by more than 40 senior religious figures, including Cardinal Robert McElroy of Washington, D.C., and the Rev. Gabriel Salguero of the National Latino Evangelical Coalition, the letter criticizes the bill’s allocation of billions for a nationwide deportation campaign and expansion of border wall infrastructure.
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The signatories argue that the funding would separate families, target houses of worship and increase deaths among asylum seekers at the U.S.-Mexico border.
The letter notes that the Department of Homeland Security has removed houses of worship from its list of sensitive enforcement locations, making religious institutions more vulnerable to immigration raids.
Faith leaders wrote, “We have already witnessed a reduction in attendance at many of our religious services in our denominations, as the threat of enforcement has deterred many families from practicing their faith.”
The letter also condemns cuts in healthcare and food assistance programs contained in the bill, warning that millions of low-income citizens and legal residents, including asylum seekers and refugees, will be pushed further into poverty.
Citing Congressional Budget Office data, the faith leaders state that the bill would transfer wealth from the poorest 10% of Americans to the richest 10%.
Trump’s sweeping budget reconciliation bill, known as the “One Big Beautiful Bill” or H.R.1, was passed by the U.S. House of Representatives in May. Saturday night, Senate Republicans voted 51 to 49 to advance the bill, which will be debated at 9 a.m. Eastern time Monday. During this time, senators will offer amendments to the bill.
Among its most contentious provisions is a 10-year ban on any state-level regulation of artificial intelligence technologies.
Section 43201 of the bill bars states or their political subdivisions from “enforcing any law or regulation limiting, restricting, or otherwise regulating artificial intelligence models, artificial intelligence systems, or automated decision systems” for a decade from the date of enactment.
Only two House Republicans, Reps. Thomas Massie of Kentucky and Warren Davidson of Ohio voted against the bill in the House. In the Senate, Republican Sens. Thom Tillis of North Carolina and Rand Paul of Kentucky voted against a motion to start debate on the bill.
Many GOP supporters argue that a uniform national policy is necessary to prevent state-by-state regulatory patchwork that could hinder technological advancement. But critics in both parties say the measure undermines state sovereignty and removes key oversight tools.
Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., has since withdrawn her support for the bill after learning of the AI provision. “I am adamantly OPPOSED to this and it is a violation of state rights,” Greene wrote on X. “We have no idea what AI will be capable of in the next 10 years and giving it free rein and tying states' hands is potentially dangerous,” she added.
The bill also directs $500 million through 2034 to the Department of Commerce for modernizing federal IT systems using AI technologies, creating lucrative opportunities for government contractors.
Palantir Technologies, a data analytics firm with longstanding ties to the federal government, is considered a likely beneficiary. The company’s AI platforms, such as Foundry and Gotham, are already deployed across multiple federal agencies, including the Departments of Homeland Security and Health and Human Services, according to the New York Times.
Palantir secured a $480 million contract from the U.S. Army for its Maven Smart System earlier this year and was awarded a $795 million contract by the Department of Defense in May. In total, the company has earned over $113 million in federal contracts in 2025 alone and more than $2.7 billion since 2009.
Trump’s executive order in March instructed federal agencies to expand data-sharing practices and has been interpreted by civil liberties groups as a precursor to a centralized federal surveillance system. According to The New York Times, Palantir founder Peter Thiel, a longtime ally of Trump, has played a key role in shaping this initiative.
Last month, 13 former Palantir employees publicly urged CEO Alex Karp to end the company’s collaboration with the administration. In a joint letter, they warned that ethical guardrails around AI use were being dismantled and that the industry risked “normalizing authoritarianism under the guise of a ‘revolution’ led by oligarchs.”
