Politics

Trump Tries To Sell GOP’s Tax Plan To Dems, But Ron Wyden Slams It

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Juliegrace Brufke Capitol Hill Reporter
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President Donald Trump’s attempt to sell the GOP’s tax plan to Democrats on the Senate Finance Committee has fallen short following a meeting at the White House Wednesday.

Sen. Ron Wyden of Oregon — the Democratic ranking member of the upper chamber’s tax-writing committee– blasted the Republican’s tax framework Wednesday, arguing the plan would place a heavier tax burden on the middle class.

“I made it clear in today’s meeting that there is an enormous chasm between the rhetoric and the reality of the Trump tax plan,” he said in a statement following the bipartisan gathering. “All the happy talk about helping the middle class and avoiding a giveaway to the wealthy sounds great, but it is not what the White House and Republicans have on offer.”

Democrats are in agreement the country needs to overhaul the tax code, Wyden said.

“As of today, the Trump plan would increase taxes on hardworking families while giving away trillions of dollars in tax cuts to the biggest corporations and the ultra-wealthy,” he continued. “You’re not going to reach bipartisanship by plowing forward with this con job on the middle class.”

House Speaker Paul Ryan, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, House Ways and Means Chairman Kevin Brady, Senate Finance Chairman Orrin Hatch, Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin and White House Economic Adviser Gary Cohn — known as the “Big Six” — have met for months in an attempt to come to a consensus on a bill the majority of the conference can support. Senate Republicans have already begun to spar over details of the plan, signaling leadership will have a difficult time reaching a goal to have legislation passed before the end of the year.

The Senate is hoping to pass the budget — which includes reconciliation instructions for tax reform and allows for $1.5 trillion in tax cuts over the course of a decade — later this week. After the fiscal year 2018 budget is passed, the top tax-writing committee will start crafting the bill. A number of specifics, including individual tax rates, are not finalized.

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