Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., told House Speaker Paul Ryan, R-Wis., to "get real" when it came to changes Republicans have proposed for the nation's tax system.
"GOP #TaxReform plan & what @SpeakerRyan says about it are 2 diff things. Says plan is for middle class but 80% is for wealthy-Get real Paul," Schumer tweeted Sunday.
President Donald Trump, along with Republicans in Congress, on Wednesday announced their proposals for overhauling the nation's tax system with a plan that would cut both individual income tax rates as well as reducing corporate taxes.
Schumer on Sunday said a primary obstacle in the GOP tax reform plan was the elimination of state and local tax deductibility, calling it the first "Achilles heel" of the Republican proposal.
"The middle class at the same time is hurt. Just one more point here. The Achilles heel of this, the first one, there are many, is state and local deductibility. In suburban, fairly well-off districts, Republican, throughout the states like New York, California, Illinois, New Jersey, those people, even with the standard deduction, will pay a lot more, Schumer told CBS' "Face The Nation."
"It should be a real test of their Congresspeople whether they vote with their constituents or they vote with the hard-right ideology against state and local deductibility," he added.
Ryan on Sunday explained elements of the proposal. He said the latest plan aimed to "help the people who are working paycheck to paycheck and keep more of their own hard-earned dollars."
"They haven't had a break in a long time," Ryan told CBS News' "Face the Nation" on Sunday. "Our economy's been growing between 1 and 2 percent for a long time. We haven't had 3 percent growth in about a decade, and that means workers are struggling."
Ryan, however, said he could not assure that every taxpayer would benefit from the proposed tax reform plan because of the varying conditions affecting a person's income tax, saying he didn't "know every single person's little, small problem or issue."
"Yes, people are going to get tax cuts. How big are those tax cuts? That depends on the individual," Ryan explained.