Washington, D.C. — Seth Hanlon, a senior fellow at the Center for American Progress, released the following statement after news that the House and Senate majority released a new agreement on their tax plan:
Republicans in Congress didn’t even wait for the only public meeting of the tax conference committee before striking a backroom deal to deliver massive tax cuts for wealthy corporations, millionaires, and billionaires. The majority party is plunging ahead with this Christmas gift for the donor class without any hearings, with only a charade of a deliberative process, and without waiting for the duly-elected senator from Alabama to take his seat.
As reported, this conference agreement is squarely inconsistent with the principles and red lines that numerous members have laid down. It does not include the health care bills whose passage Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME) said were prerequisites for her vote, let alone address the damage caused by the provision sabotaging health care. It fails to meaningfully boost the Child Tax Credit for low-income families. It hurts rather than helps Dreamers. As every credible analysis has found, it explodes deficits by at least $1 trillion—and potentially much more with gimmicks. And it was brought to this point by a rushed, secretive, and now undemocratic process—a mockery of regular order.
And, of course, this tax scam is the very opposite of the middle-class-focused tax reform that President Donald Trump and other members of the majority promised. The American people have seen right through this scam from the very beginning and oppose this bill in historic numbers. What remains to be seen is whether members of Congress will listen to their constituents or to their own past statements of principle.
For more information on this topic or to speak with an expert, contact Allison Preiss at [email protected].