House passes GOP tax bill on a party-line vote, moves to the Senate

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House Speaker Paul Ryan, “the zombie-eyed granny starver from the state of Wisconsin,” was so overjoyed with achieving his boyhood dream of sticking it to the working class, the elderly, the disabled, and the poor — the “takers” as his running mate Mitt Romney once referred to them — that he was practically giddy.

That someone takes such pleasure in causing millions of Americans to suffer is pure evil.

The House has passed the abomination of the GOP tax bill on a party-line vote of 2227-203, with only a dozen Tea-Publicans voting no. House passes final tax bill, edging GOP closer to win:

Arizona Congressional Delegation: YEAHS: Biggs, Gosar, McSally, Schweikert; NAYS: Gallego, Grijalva, O’Halleran, Sinema. Not Voting: Franks (seat vacant).

The Senate is expected to pass the bill later on Tuesday, sending it to President Trump’s desk and allowing the GOP to achieve its goal of rewriting the tax code in Trump’s first year in office.

Multiple protesters interrupted House floor debate on the tax bill Tuesday, including people who shouted “kill the bill, don’t kill us!” as well as a woman in a wheelchair who said she relies on Medicaid and warned that the bill would “starve” the public.

One protester even interrupted Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) as he delivered a floor speech that he’s wanted to give for decades in support of the tax overhaul.

“Today we are giving the [wealthy] people of this country their money back. This is their money, after all,” Ryan said.

A woman in the public visitors’ gallery then shouted, “You’re lying!”

Republicans view the tax overhaul as critical to maintaining their congressional majorities in 2018 — a curious calculation given that the GOP tax bill is deeply unpopular with the American public,
Americans have already made up their minds about the tax bill – and it looks brutal for the GOP (on average, just 33% of Americans approve of the bill while 52% disapprove) — after having failed this year to fulfill their seven-year pledge to repeal ObamaCare.

The first overhaul of the tax code since 1986 sped through Congress at a rapid pace, from House Republicans first unveiling a bill [drafted in secret without any public hearings or any Democratic input] in early November to passing a final bicameral compromise a month later.

By contrast, the 1986 tax reform effort had bipartisan support and didn’t reach then-President Reagan’s desk until nearly a year after it was first introduced in the House.

* * *

The bill lowers the top individual rate from 39.6 percent to 37 percent, slashes the corporate tax rate from 35 percent to 21 percent, and creates a 20-percent deduction for income of pass-through businesses that pay taxes through the individual code.

It increases the exemption amounts for the individual alternative minimum tax and estate tax, and it moves the U.S. to a territorial tax system that generally exempts U.S. companies’ foreign earnings from U.S. taxes.

Additionally, the bill effectively repeals ObamaCare’s individual mandate that requires people to buy health insurance or face a tax penalty and allows for drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge — two top priorities for many Republicans.

If Congress does not vote to waive the PAYGO rules, the GOP tax bil will also trigger an automatic $25 million cut to Medicare.

In order to comply with budget rules that allow the Senate to pass the bill with just a simple-majority vote, most of the tax cuts for individuals expire after eight years while the corporate tax cuts are permanent.

The Joint Committee on Taxation (JCT) estimated that income groups across the board would on average get a tax cut in 2019. But in 2027, after the individual cuts are set to expire, income groups under $75,000 would on average see their taxes go up.

JCT also estimated that the bill would add $1.46 trillion to the debt over 10 years.

The House Republicans who voted against the bill were mostly lawmakers from New York, New Jersey and California who were troubled by the bill’s $10,000 cap on the state and local tax (SALT) deduction.

Rep. Rodney Frelinghuysen (N.J.), the chairman of the Appropriations Committee who also voted against the House version of the bill, said he opposed the final measure because of its cap on the state and local tax deduction.

“I had hoped to be able to vote for a pro-growth tax bill. However, H.R. 1 forces New Jersey residents to pay for tax cuts for residents in other states. I voted ‘No’!” he said in a statement.

Rep. Pete King (R-N.Y.), whose Long Island-area district would be negatively impacted by the reduced state and local tax deduction, said he’s gotten negative feedback from his constituents.

“Nothing good. Especially from the Republicans. People who voted for Trump are very disappointed,” King said.

One California Republican who voted against the original House version, Rep. Tom McClintock, received a standing ovation during a GOP conference meeting Monday evening upon announcing he would vote for the final version. All of the other 12 Republicans who opposed the original House version did so again on the final measure.

Only one Republican who does not represent a high-tax state cited the bill’s impact on the deficit as a reason for voting no: Rep. Walter Jones (R-N.C.).

“I’m all for tax reform, but it must grow the economy, not the debt,” Jones said in a statement.

This abomination of a tax bill is now in the Senate. Stay tuned.

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23 thoughts on “House passes GOP tax bill on a party-line vote, moves to the Senate”

  1. Time will tell. If the bill stagnates or tanks the economy, Dems win. If it ushers in great economic growth, Rs and the country win. Time will tell.

    • We have almost 40 years of historical data about the failure of “trickle down” economics. It is a proven fraud, we can predict what is going to happen. This is not a clap your hands and believe in the trickle down fairy and let’s see what happens moment.

      • Apparently there’s a war on history along with a war on science. Or the good Senator has a severe case of Republiamnesia.

      • alan greenspan said in his life time he had never seen it happen despite the claims of tax cutters and trickle downers!

    • Well, John, if these human experiments could be performed only on people such as yourself and the other Trump voters, that would be fine and dandy. If all of you, who are not already millionaires and billionaires, suffer and die from the same misery you are so willing to inflict on random others, then who cares?

      Unfortunately, this suffering will not be selective. It will not divide the good from the bad, the just from the unjust, the kind from the cruel. It will just simply start at the bottom and hurt the most vulnerable. And for no reason other than people like you, haters or democracy, haters of your own countrymen including children, wish to destroy over 80 years of democratic achievement.

      What kind of country do you envision, John?

      Better stated, what is exactly is your vision, motherfucker?

      Ha, we’re supposed to be afraid of the whole world, we need more defense spending to deal with all our enemies.

      Well, guess what? The worst enemy, the most destructive enemy of this country is right here inside, born here, and looks just like everyone else. Mostly white men.

      “Time will tell”, my ass. No, your ass. Time has already told us.

        • “Mostly white men in Congress, to be sure, the Republicans.”

          No, you spoke the truth before you thought better of it added the obligatory nod to diversity. You hate white men, in general. If they agree with you, you will let them, but in your heart of hearts, you simply hate white men. Your previous writings makes that clear. You have always referred to white men as “old, fat, ugly, stupid, hate-filled, oppressive, etc., etc., etc”, and you have always used your best hate filled rhetoric in discussing white men. You really should just go ahead and embrace your true self…you will get plenty of support here.

          • Listen, Troll Man, you don’t know a damn thing about me. Also, if you’re going to quote me then you better have a link.

            I’m in no mood for your trash talk.

            And how many times have I asked you not to reply to me? What kind of sick-o stalks on a blog? You want to get personal?

          • And you really should figure out how to at least put your comments in the right place.

            Better yet, don’t comment at all.

      • Replying to myself. (Sometimes, this happens)

        “The worst enemy, the most destructive enemy of this country is right here inside, born here, and looks just like everyone else. Mostly white men.”

        Mostly white men in Congress, to be sure, the Republicans. But in the general population there is more diversity.

  2. do any of you think the clintonista donor class of the democratic party will allow any meaningful roll back if the democrats win in 2018? also democrats who had no problem with the debt going up 9 trillion dollars under obama say 1.5 trillion for tax cut will be a financial disaster? and you wonder why the voters have a low opinion of both partys!

  3. What middle class? Health care costs are going up ;social security is insecure and if the corporations and rich want our military protection they need to be taxed more because for some reason we are protectors of the world while the county where I live can’t even afford to get rape kits tested…ignores the mentally ill …..and 1/4 of children in Arizona live in poverty. What middle class ? The corporations and wealthy need to have their loopholes closed and to stop having taxpayers supplement their low wages and lack of health care for its workers aka corporate welfare. It is a shame that this giveaway is going forward …..Tax deform is more like it .

  4. The Repugs are so incompetent they could screw up a (insert analogy of choice here). They have to adjust & re-vote:

    Republicans had hoped the Senate vote would put the bill in President Trump’s hands to sign. But the chamber’s parliamentarian Tuesday afternoon ruled that the three provisions violated the chamber’s Byrd Rule — guidelines on what types of legislation can pass with 50 votes.

    Snip

    The parliamentarian took issue with a provision allowing for tax-incentivized accounts for home-schooling expenses, as well as one dealing with exempting certain universities’ endowments from a new excise tax. The third had to do with the abbreviated name of the legislation. Democrats raised the provisions with the parliamentarian in a bid to delay the bill, but they lack the votes to ultimately prevent it from becoming law.

    https://tinyurl.com/ybls3xbt

    They even screwed up on the title. Pathetic.

    • They are just evil. They don’t even pretend to care what is going to happen to the country because of this abomination.

      I envy people who believe there is an afterlife and a hell for the worst sinners. The GOP senators and representatives burning in hell for all eternity would be a comforting thought.

  5. The Associated Press‏Verified account
    @AP

    BREAKING: Democrats say 3 provisions in GOP tax bill violate Senate rules and will be removed, forcing House to revote Wednesday.

    2:43 PM – 19 Dec 2017

  6. Honestly, I am without words.

    The seething hatred and contempt I have for these people cannot be verbalized, at least by me.

    But if I happen to run across someone who can I will be sure to post it.

  7. John Lewis‏Verified account
    @repjohnlewis

    I oppose this conference report with every bone in my body. This tax bill is a $2.3 trillion holiday gift for Wall Street, the rich, and the wealthy. Conceived in darkness and birthed with the help of donors and funders. This bill is not for the people. It is not tax reform.

    10:34 AM – 19 Dec 2017

    • I’m filing to become an S Corporation tomorrow.

      I’m also going to pay off my mortgage and rent my house back to myself.

      I’m hoping the new pass through S Corp loophole and the real estate loopholes will be enough to cover the rise in my healthcare costs.

      Of course, theses are temporary measures while I wait for all those trickle down millions to fill up my bank accounts.

    • It is certainly not tax “reform”. Exactly how many corporate loopholes were eliminated? Further the Repubs gave up trying to convince their gullible supporters eliminating the “death” tax is good for everyone. There are millions of middle class voters in West Virginia, Ohio and Wisconsin with estates up to $10 million who are overjoyed. And those pesky deficits they roasted Obama about, the Repubs decided to follow that economic genius Dick Cheney, and decided they don’t matter.

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