Trump tax cut plan gains momentum after U.S. budget vote

[rooster59]

Trump tax cut plan gains momentum after U.S. budget vote

By Amanda Becker

 

U.S. President Donald Trump and his economic team meet with members of the Senate Finance Committee at the White House in Washington, U.S., October 18, 2017. REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque

 

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Donald Trump's tax reform plans won partial support on Friday when Republican U.S. Senator Rand Paul said he was "all in" for massive tax cuts, but the party was still far from united over how to achieve the main item on its domestic agenda.

 

Trump's drive to overhaul the U.S. tax code cleared a critical hurdle on Thursday when the Senate approved a budget measure that will allow Republicans to pursue a tax-cut package without Democratic party support.

 

But Republicans, who control both the Senate and House of Representatives, have yet to produce a tax reform bill as a self-imposed deadline to overhaul the U.S. tax code by the end of the year approaches. The party's lawmakers differ widely on what cuts to make and how to pay for them.

 

They are under intense pressure to succeed on tax reform after failing so far to make good on their other main legislative ambition: scrapping Obamacare, the signature healthcare law of former President Barack Obama.

 

On major world markets, stock prices advanced on Friday, bond yields rose, and the U.S. dollar strengthened on increased hopes that Trump could make progress on his fiscal plans.

 

Democrats are likely to reject the Trump administration's tax plan, which promises to deliver up to $6 trillion in tax cuts to businesses and people but will bloat the federal deficit by $1.5 trillion over the next decade.

 

FISCAL HAWK

 

Senator Rand Paul, a fiscal hawk, was the lone Republican to vote against the budget measure on Thursday. He objected to spending levels that he said would exceed agreed caps by $43 billion, and called for spending reforms for so-called entitlements such as the Medicare and Medicaid health insurance programs.

 

On Friday, Paul said in a post on Twitter that he was "all in" for the "biggest, boldest cuts possible - and soon!" But he did not address the specifics of the tax plan.

 

Trump on Friday expressed optimism about the tax reform, saying Paul would eventually back the proposed tax measure when it comes up for a vote.

 

"The Budget passed late last night, 51 to 49. We got ZERO Democrat votes with only Rand Paul (he will vote for Tax Cuts) voting against," Trump wrote on Twitter. "This now allows for the passage of large scale Tax Cuts (and Reform), which will be the biggest in the history of our country!"

 

Trump told Fox Business Network in a television interview set to air on Sunday that he thinks Republicans have the votes to pass a big tax cut package. He said he had been thinking about tying tax legislation to an infrastructure spending bill but that it was not clear a combined package would gain more votes.

 

"I don’t want to take any chances cause I feel we have the votes right now the way it is," he said, according to a transcript provided by the cable news outlet.

 

The budget resolution passed by the Senate on Thursday has to be reconciled with a markedly different version passed by the House, where Republicans say negotiations on a unified measure could take up to two weeks.

 

The House budget resolution calls for a revenue-neutral tax bill and would combine tax cuts with $203 billion in spending cuts to mandatory programs, including food assistance for the poor.

 

As far as spending cuts go, the Senate version only instructs the Energy and Natural Resources Committee to save at least $1 billion over the next decade.

 

That difference could set up a possible conflict between Republicans in the Senate and House as they negotiate a final budget blueprint.

 

Overhauling the complex U.S. tax code has defied Washington since 1986.

 

In the current effort, some Republican senators question the planned repeal of a 40 percent inheritance tax levied on estates worth more than $5.5 million, or $11 million for married couples, a tax paid only by the wealthiest American taxpayers.

 

Republican lawmakers from high-tax states such as New York are also seeking compromise on repealing the deduction from federal taxes for state and local tax payments.

 

The party's lawmakers agree roughly on lowering the corporate income tax rate from 35 percent but have not settled on a final number.

 

Trump seeks to cut the corporate rate to 20 percent, which he says would create jobs and boost wages for blue-collar workers.

 

Asked how he would make the case that the plan would not be a tax cut for the wealthy, House Speaker Paul Ryan told CBS, "That's why we're introducing the fourth bracket, so that high-income earners do not see a big rate cut and those resources go to the middle class ... and closing loopholes and carve outs which disproportionately benefit the very high-income people."

 

 

-- © Copyright Reuters 2017-10-21

[mike324]

Cutting corporate tax don't increase jobs and boost wages. States have already been offering big corporations tax deductions, big corporations have taken the incentives and many don't even pay anywhere near the top corporate tax rate. Majority pay around 20-25%. Not only that, it is the economy that dictates jobs. These big corporation that have taken tax incentives have continue to cut jobs when the economy goes south.

[notmyself]

1 hour ago, mike324 said:

Cutting corporate tax don't increase jobs and boost wages. States have already been offering big corporations tax deductions, big corporations have taken the incentives and many don't even pay anywhere near the top corporate tax rate. Majority pay around 20-25%. Not only that, it is the economy that dictates jobs. These big corporation that have taken tax incentives have continue to cut jobs when the economy goes south.

 

Kansas would be a good example.

 

[Jingthing]

Ideology (and welfare for the wealthy) over common sense.

Maybe someday the U.S. will get a real populist "revolution" for the common people (of all races, not only white) rather than the totally FAKE billionaire corrupt clown potus that only occasionally poses as one for votes. 

Edited October 21, 2017 by Jingthing

[mrfill]

The US still spends more than it earns. That's why its debt is $20 trillion+

 

About time they started paying off their debt instead of increasing it.

[Thaidream]

Absolute madness- the average person in America wants a reasonable and responsible tax cut but they will never get it with the Trump cabal in power. Taxes need to rise for the 1% wealthy in America and this extra revenue 'distributed to those below or at the poverty level and I might add the elderly who have seen their purchasing power decline year after year due to increased food and medical costs. The Trump minions are claiming the tax cut bill will put an extra $1000 in the pocket of the middle class. What they are not telling you is that that will not  be a credit but a reduction of $1000 per year on your tax bill.  That means you will save $2.75 per day- Wow- that'll change your life! Smoke and mirrors and pure baloney

 

The Us Tax code itself is an abomination- it runs about 75,000 pages and even the Internal Revenue Service does not understand it. The whole code needs to be revised but it won't because it gives the wealthy and big business a way out of actually paying much tax.  As far as business- they are parking offshore almost a trillion dollars that needs to be brought back to America- taxed at about 15% but with the proviso the money must be spent to expand business and hire US citizens.

 

Trump himself will gain from the so called 'tax reform " bill which will not be a reform but will reward the wealthy and make them more wealthy. In addition- Trump and his cabal want to end the inheritance tax which will allow the super wealthy to pass on their entire estate and keep the wealth in the family making more wealth-for themselves. The Republican Healthcare bill that Trump wanted so bad and failed was bad.  The tax bill is horrid.

[Sir Swagman]

As I saw elsewhere a post that 'for a group (of imposters - my words) that proclaim themselves Christians - Ryan, Pence and the mentally challenged Orangutang that is POTUS - they are smacking the sick and needy without a thought'.

 But...it is in a good cause, those impoverished individuals (for one) dying with $5.49million in assets (they have failed to hide). A disgrace is what it is. Still 'n all, Mugabe making the news again makes DT loook marginally better by comparison.

[jackh]

Full speed ahead for the DT train. Gotta love it! Can't wait for 2018. It will change the face of the US govt as the swamp continues to drain. AND DT will get to appoint 3 more to the supreme court soon. Gotta love it!

[boomerangutang]

The Feds need to cut spending and steer away from borrowing - two things which they're incapable of doing. 

 

Having Republicans deal with tax issues is like putting a gambling addict (who is always drunk and broke) in charge of a church group's finances.   Republicans are the type who, if told to buy a beach umbrella for a family of 3, would get the Pentagon to special-order a Hindenburg blimp sized structure made out of tin, and pay a king's ransom of borrowed money (and put 60% in their pockets), .....and it wouldn't function properly.

 

 

Edited October 21, 2017 by boomerangutang

[ilostmypassword]

2 hours ago, jackh said:

Full speed ahead for the DT train. Gotta love it! Can't wait for 2018. It will change the face of the US govt as the swamp continues to drain. AND DT will get to appoint 3 more to the supreme court soon. Gotta love it!

Yes, more bad news for those limousine liberals. That is, if your idea of a limousine liberal is a truck driver. Neal Gorsuch, Trump's first appointment to the Supreme Court, ruled in favor of a company that fired a truck driver who decided that it made more sense to leave his his trailer unattended rather than freeze to death. There was a total of 9 judges on the panel that decided the question and Gorsuch was joined by...guess how many? If your guess is greater than zero, you're wrong. Trump's appointments, the kind of judges who meet the Federalist Society's approval will do their best to support corporations and screw over American workers.

[Mansell]

Just keep giving this sociopath POTUS more and more rope and eventually he will hang himself......hopefully he won't have destroyed the country before then.

[jackh]

On October 21, 2017 at 9:40 AM, boomerangutang said:

The Feds need to cut spending and steer away from borrowing - two things which they're incapable of doing. 

 

Having Republicans deal with tax issues is like putting a gambling addict (who is always drunk and broke) in charge of a church group's finances.   Republicans are the type who, if told to buy a beach umbrella for a family of 3, would get the Pentagon to special-order a Hindenburg blimp sized structure made out of tin, and pay a king's ransom of borrowed money (and put 60% in their pockets), .....and it wouldn't function properly.

 

 

I agree with everything you said, except you misspelled 1 word. Republicans is spelled 'Democrats'.

[GOLDBUGGY]

On ‎10‎/‎21‎/‎2017 at 11:40 PM, boomerangutang said:

The Feds need to cut spending and steer away from borrowing - two things which they're incapable of doing. 

 

Having Republicans deal with tax issues is like putting a gambling addict (who is always drunk and broke) in charge of a church group's finances.   Republicans are the type who, if told to buy a beach umbrella for a family of 3, would get the Pentagon to special-order a Hindenburg blimp sized structure made out of tin, and pay a king's ransom of borrowed money (and put 60% in their pockets), .....and it wouldn't function properly.

 

 

Same as the Canadian Government except they wouldn't buy this Beach Umbrella. What they would do instead is Lease this Beach Umbrella for 99 Years.

 

Then discover on that day, when this family showed up for there one day on the beach ever year, that this Beach Umbrella was too small to cover everyone aanyway.

[boomerangutang]

On 10/21/2017 at 10:10 PM, jackh said:

Full speed ahead for the DT train. Gotta love it! Can't wait for 2018. It will change the face of the US govt as the swamp continues to drain. AND DT will get to appoint 3 more to the supreme court soon. Gotta love it!

'Gotta love it' if you love seeing the USA slip from the swamp to the toxic cesspool.

[boomerangutang]

Everyone wanting to gauge what Republicans do to budgets and taxes, should take a close look at what Republican wonderkid did to Kansas in recent years. 

 

chicagotribune.com/news/opinion/zorn/ct-kansas-brownback-trickle-down-tax-fail-zorn-perspec-0621-md-20170620-column.html

 

Reagan made it famous:  "Trickle Down Theory.  Lower taxes for wealthy, and they will make more and better paying jobs for the downtrodden."   It's never been true.  If wealthy get more money, they sock it away, or buy more expensive toys.  Wealthy don't miraculously get less greedy if their wealth increases.  

 

Does a sugar-addicted kid eat less candy if she's given bags full of candy?