Democrats changing tune on tax bill
After staunch opposition, some now say cuts didn’t go far enough
WASHINGTON - Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., was resolutely opposed to the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act. From his perch on the Senate Budget Committee, he weighed it down with rules challenges. At rallies across the Rust Belt, he complained it would speed up America’s transformation into an oligarchy.
On CNN on Sunday, however, he said that the bill didn’t go far enough.
“According to the Tax Policy Center, next year, 91 percent of middle-income Americans will receive a tax cut,” CNN’s Jake Tapper asked Sanders. “Isn’t that a good thing?”
“Yes, it is a very good thing,” Sanders said. “And that’s why we should have made the tax breaks for the middle class permanent.
Sanders’ answer went viral over the sleepy holiday weekend. It was, said Re- publicans, evidence that the tax cut bill would become hard for Democrats to oppose once it was signed.
“When Bernie comes back to town, he should pledge to vote with Republi- cans in 10 years to make the tax cuts permanent for the middle class,” said Republican National Committee spokesman Michael Ahrens in a Monday statement.
There is little chance of that, but the politics of the tax cut bill are likely to shift in 2018. Even liberal Democratic politicians expect the tax bill to boost the economy heading into the midterms. Both acknowledge that voters who expected to face higher tax bills will see benefits. A CBS News video about the tax cuts, which showed three families surprised and happy to learn that they’d be getting money back, circulated widely as a preview of what to expect.
Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W. Va., spent most of a 16-recent radio interview on Dec. 20 defending his vote against the bill. “I was for lowering corporate taxes from 35 to 25,” said Manchin.
“Why couldn’t you support a bill that will benefit the vast majority of West Virginians?” asked host Hoppy Kercheval.
“The things that you have mentioned are correct,” Manchin replied. “Initially, people will benefit.”