Some House Democrats are giving a chilly reception to President Donald Trump's push to extend parts of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act passed during his first administration that are expected to expire at the end of the year.
Rep. Maxine Waters, D-Calif., the ranking member of the House Financial Service Committee, told The Hill on Thursday there's no chance Democrats will work with Republicans on tax cuts over concerns that funding for federal safety net programs will be slashed.
"None. Absolutely none," Waters said. "Listen, we can't have an administration that's willing to cut, cut, cut the most vulnerable people in our society and then tell us to support them on tax cuts. Hell no."
Rep. Adam Smith, D-Wash., ranking member of the House Armed Services Committee, told The Hill a bipartisan effort on tax cuts was laughable.
"My first instinct was to laugh and say, 'Good luck with that,'" he said. "To blatantly eliminate huge swaths of revenue in our current fiscal situation is something I certainly am not supportive of."
Trump, speaking by video link Thursday to the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, said he's attempting to sway Democrats to support his efforts to extend the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act and lower the corporate interest rate for businesses that make products in the U.S.
"We're working with the Democrats on getting an extension of the original Trump tax cuts," Trump said. "When we do the renewal of the Trump tax [cuts], we have to get Democrats to approve it. If the Democrats didn't approve it, I don't know how they can survive with about a 45% tax increase."
But House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., told reporters Thursday, according to The Hill, that no formal negotiations on taxes have begun between Democrats and Republicans.
Rep. Richard Neal, D-Mass., the ranking member of the House Ways and Means Committee, the chief tax-writing committee in the lower chamber, told The Hill he has been expecting Republicans to reach out and anticipated remarks like those made by Trump on Thursday. Neal said he was open to hearing what Republicans have to say.
Republicans have been planning to use budget reconciliation to pass their legislative agenda without needing Democrat support. Reconciliation measures can pass the Senate with a simple majority, avoiding a Democrat filibuster and the need for the GOP to make concessions.
Trump and House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., reportedly favor Republicans using one reconciliation bill, but Senate leadership is in favor of splitting the tax package into a separate bill, with the other bill focusing on border and energy priorities. Trump has said he is open to a two-bill proposal.
"As long as we get something passed as quickly as possible," Trump said.
Michael Katz ✉
Michael Katz is a Newsmax reporter with more than 30 years of experience reporting and editing on news, culture, and politics.
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