Republicans are considering massive last-minute changes to their tax bill to try and win over holdouts

pulse

November 28, 2017 9:51 PM

Republicans are considering changes to their tax bill on everything from Obamacare to a "fiscal trigger" in order to win over GOP hold outs.

Senate Republicans held their weekly policy lunch on Tuesday to discuss their tax bill, and President Donald Trump was in attendance.
The group discussed a slew of changes to the bill, including a "fiscal trigger," adjustments to the state and local tax deduction repeal, and a follow-up bill for Obamacare.
Whether these changes will win over enough Republicans to get the bill through the Senate remains to be seen.

As Republicans' final push for tax reform picks up steam, Senate GOP leaders are considering a slew of changes to their bill in order to win over skeptical members.

The Senate GOP conference held its weekly lunch on Tuesday with President Donald Trump in attendance. The meeting was designed to try to bring on board some of the roughly eight members withholding public support.

Senators said the conference discussed some big changes to make the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) more palatable before a possible vote by the end of the week.

Here's a rundown of some the discussion coming out of the lunch:

A possible "fiscal trigger" to appease deficit hawks:
Bob Corker
told reporters
A change to the state and local tax deduction:
The House bill included
A Trump promise on the Obamacare stabilization deal:
told GOP lawmakers
been blocked by GOP leadership

While these changes appear to address the concerns of a slew of GOP members, a slew of questions remain: Will these changes be adopted by leadership? Will they abide by Senate rules? How would these changes affect the economy?

Perhaps most importantly, it is not clear whether these additions would get enough Republicans on board with the plan. If more than two members vote against the bill on the Senate floor, it will fail.

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