Deals get GOP Senate tax bill closer to passing
WASHINGTON – Senate Republicans moved closer Tuesday to passing a bill that would overhaul the nation’s tax system after leaders began winning over potential opponents through a series of deals to resolve their concerns.
For Sen. Bob Corker, R-Tenn., who worried that the tax bill would increase the federal deficit, it was the promise of a legislative “trigger” that would repeal the tax cuts if deficits appeared.
For Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, it was the promise that separate legislation would be considered to offset the increase in health insurance premiums that would be likely if the tax bill eliminated a provision of the Affordable Care Act.
GOP Senate leaders emerged from a one-hour meeting with President Trump expressing optimism that the tax bill would pass in the next few days, but they acknowledged that the vote will probably be close.
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., described the process of wrangling enough votes for passage as “a challenging exercise.”
“I think I’m sitting there with a Rubik’s cube trying to get to 50 (votes),” he said.
A tax overhaul is a top priority of Trump and congressional Republicans, who are pushing to get the bill approved before the end of the year. Because Republicans hold a bare 52-48 advantage in the Senate, they can afford to lose no more than two of their own members if the bill is to pass.
The legislation cleared the Senate Budget Committee on Tuesday in a party-line 12-11 vote. The committee voted to combine the tax bill with language that would open a portion of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge to oil and gas exploration.
The measure headed to the Senate floor, where a final vote could come this week.
The bill’s prospects improved significantly when Corker announced he was likely to support it.
Corker had said he would oppose any tax bill that would raise the deficit. After the meeting with Trump, Corker said he would support the legislation if it included a trigger that would rescind the tax cuts if they caused a hike in the deficit. He did not provide details of the language.
Collins said she secured an agreement in which a bipartisan health insurance bill by Sens. Lamar Alexander, RTenn., and Patty Murray, D-Wash., would be considered along with legislation she filed with Sen. Bill Nelson, DFla.