The stunning allegations against Roy Moore could throw the GOP's tax cut push into even more chaos

pulse

November 10, 2017 5:36 PM

The allegations against Republican Alabama Senate candidate Roy Moore could throw another monkey wrench into the Republicans' tax reform push.

A woman told The Washington Post that Republican Alabama Senate candidate Roy Moore initiated a sexual encounter when she was 14 years old and he was 32 years old.
Not only do these allegations call in to questions Moore's fitness to serve in the Senate, but they could also complicate Republicans' massive tax reform push.

On Thursday, The Washington Post published allegations by four women that Alabama Republican Senate candidate Roy Moore pursued relationships with them when they were teenagers and Moore was in his 30s.

The most serious of these allegations was an on-the-record statement from a woman named

Republicans are attempting to push through their massive tax overhaul by the end of the year and have already advanced the House version of their bill out of committee.

The Senate introduced their own version of the TCJA on Thursday, and the finance committee is scheduled to start their markup of the bill next week.

Already the timeline was stretched thin since a bill must be passed by December 8 to avoid a government shutdown, which could draw focus away from the tax bill. Now, on the heels of that fight will be the Alabama special election on December 12 and the possibility of a Jones win.

This distraction, said Chris Krueger of Cowen Washington Research Group, is an issue no matter who wins. Moore is already known as a volatile politician, and Senate Majority Mitch McConnell expressly favored his primary opponent, Luther Strange.

So, Kreuger said, Moore will not only provide an unwelcome distraction but also can't be counted on even if he does win.

"Regardless, you have a major distraction and come, someone who will not be a reliable vote for Mitch McConnell to bank," Kreuger said.

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