House GOP OKs tax reform bill
WASHINGTON — House Republicans approved their sweeping tax-cut package Thursday, setting up a showdown with the Senate, where Republicans are struggling to win support for their own significantly different approach.
Senate GOP leaders, after making some revisions this week, are facing mounting dissent and criticism that their tax plan favors corporations and the wealthy. An analysis by Congress’ bipartisan tax experts Thursday concluded the Senate plan would raise taxes for some of the poorest Americans by 2021.
House Republicans had an easier time, passing their measure by a vote of 227-205, though 13 Republicans voted no.
Democrats were unified against the plan, and the Republican defections came from lawmakers in the Northeast and California, who were mostly concerned about the proposed elimination of deductions for state and local income taxes and the capping of property tax deductions at $10,000. The write-offs are widely used in their high-tax districts.
Before voting against the bill, Rep. Darrell Issa, R-Vista, said, “I believe this bill could be made better.”
Californians would also be hard hit by the House plan’s limits on mortgage interest deductions. After the vote, House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy told reporters he was working on revisions to improve the bill for California taxpayers, when it undergoes changes to reconcile with whatever the Senate passes.
“You’ll see some changes that would come for California and others, and I think you’ll see more people vote for it,” the Bakersfield Republican said.
Ahead of the House vote, President Donald Trump traveled to Capitol Hill to bolster Republicans worried that if they didn’t pass tax reform, they would risk voter revolt in next year’s midterm election for failing to keep a major campaign promise, particularly after their failed Obamacare repeal.
Trump assured House Republicans that he was behind their effort. The White House has so far expressed no preference for either the House or Senate version.
Rather than a hard sell, the president emphasized the historic nature of what they were trying to accomplish. Though the Obamacare effort stalled amid opposition from a handful of Senate Republicans, he predicted that senators currently voicing skepticism about the tax reform bill would “come around.”
“I love you,” Trump told them, according to those who attended the private meeting. “Go vote!”
House leaders celebrated the vote.
“Passing this bill is the single biggest thing we can do to grow the economy, restore opportunity and help these middle-income families that are struggling,” said House Speaker Paul D. Ryan, R-Wis.
But approval sets Republicans in the House and Senate on a collision course as they rush to finish the package by Christmas.
The Senate plan has key differences and is facing greater hurdles for passage, particularly as senators try to find ways to enhance benefits for middle-income Americans.
Sen. Ron Johnson, R-Wis., became the first to GOP senator to oppose the proposal, saying it did not do enough to help small businesses. Centrist Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, has also raised concerns, as have other senators.
Under special budget rules, Republicans can only afford to lose two votes in the Senate, assuming all Democrats vote against their plan.