Voters say tax plan will just go to wealthy

WASHINGTON — Republicans are investing enormous amounts of political capital and dollars to pump up support for their tax bill in a risky, last-ditch legislative undertaking ahead of next year’s midterm elections.

A group aligned with House Speaker Paul D. Ryan, R-Wis., has spent $20 million so far on ads and outreach in communities across the nation. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., is set to fast-track the bill through the chamber next week.

The problem is, voters just don’t seem that interested.

Polls show most Americans view the tax bill as benefiting the wealthy and corporations, skeptical that it would do much for middleclass taxpayers. Outside analyses of the bill echo those assessments despite revisions.

Republicans are nevertheless rushing ahead on a plan that may please wealthy donors, but it is opposed by most major categories of voters, including independents, women, minorities and young people, according to a recent Quinnipiac University poll. Even among Republicans, support is hardly overwhelming, with 60 percent approving the plan, 15 percent disapproving and 26 percent unsure.

Such lackluster enthusiasm and Republicans’ failure so far to sell their tax plan to middle-class Americans raises questions about whether the issue will be the slam-dunk in the 2018 midterm elections that party leaders predict. After the failure to repeal the Affordable Care Act, Republicans are desperate for a political win.

Part of the problem has been the unusual speed by which Republicans are muscling through the House and Senate tax bills, which would cut corporate rates to their lowest level in decades, 20 percent, but make only temporary cuts to individual taxes while doing away with popular write-offs and deductions.

Republicans have been unable to build public momentum without the prolonged hearings and debates that would be normal for legislation of this magnitude.