Moderate Senate Democrats reject GOP tax reform bill, offer to negotiate compromise legislation. They say GOP bill does not meet announced goals.
WASHINGTON — More than a dozen Senate Democrats, including several moderates whose states President Trump visited to encourage their support for tax reform, held a joint news conference Tuesday to say they are still willing to work on compromise tax legislation despite being frozen out of negotiations.
“We all want to do tax reform. We all believe it needs to be done,” said Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W. V.
The GOP bill passed a final procedural hurdle Tuesday afternoon before heading to the Senate floor when the Senate Budget Committee voted to combine the tax reform legislation with language that opens up part of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge for oil and gas exploration.
Manchin said what he and his colleagues liked what they heard from Trump and top White House aides about their goals for tax reform, but that was not what turned out to be in the Senate bill.
“No tax breaks for the rich? I said that’s great. Helping the middle class, working class? That’s great. That’s not what we’re seeing,” Manchin said.
Sen. Joe Donnelly, D-Ind., said that along with attending a dinner with several colleagues at the White House, he flew with Trump when he went to promote tax cuts in Indiana, and went back again when Vice President Mike Pence held another rally.
“We told the administration, our focus is keeping jobs here in this country, ending outsourcing, standing up for the middle class, and making sure this doesn’t explode the deficit. And we were told at that dinner, ‘That’s exactly our goal,’” Donnelly said.
“And what we’re saying is, we can do this. This country’s so much better off with a tax bill that passes with 60 or 70 votes than one that ends up at 50 with the vice president breaking the tie. Why don’t we all do this together, stand up for the middle class, keep jobs here?” Donnelly said.
Several senators in the group refused to say if they would oppose a procedural vote that could come Wednesday to begin debate on the bill.
“It’s unfair to ask that question,” said Sen. Heidi Heitkamp, D-N. D. “It’s still a moving target. I’m deeply concerned about a number of provisions, especially the provisions that take the bulk of dollars that we’re going to invest in this and front-load them to the richest Americans on the individual side. That is as clear as anything you’re going to see in this tax package. And that’s what Joe [Manchin] and Joe [Donnelly] and I were promised would not happen by the White House.”
Heitkamp said every member of Congress would get a disproportionate share of what would be spent on tax cuts.
“But I’ve got constituents who aren’t going to be winners who make a lot less than I do,” Heitkamp said.
Trump travels to Missouri on Wednesday promote the tax plan.
“My message to Missourians is: We can do this in a way that really will help most of you but not the way the Senate is proposing to change the tax code,” said Sen. Claire McCaskill, D-Mo. She said the bill continues to allow “goodies” that let corporations and hedge funds lower their taxable income. She added that Republicans she’s spoken with are uncomfortable with the process and the bill it produced.
“They are under tremendous political pressure. This is all about them getting a tax bill passed to show they can run government,” McCaskill said.
“So I’ve been trying to say to them, ‘Listen, do what you’ve got to do, but if you stumble, know we’re here. We’re here to work with you. We’re here to salvage a bipartisan tax reform bill that will accomplish two-thirds of what you’re trying to do.’ ” she said.
