Republican deficit hawks vanish as Senate races to pass tax bill

The Republican chase for a rare political and policy win with passage of their tax plan has thinned the ranks of the party's deficit hawks. The last one standing in the Senate chamber was Tennessee Senator Bob Corker, and he was resigned to defeat.

Mitch McConnell: ‘We have the votes’ to pass tax bill

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., said "we have the votes" to pass the tax reform bill. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., announced he has secured at least 50 votes needed to pass a $1.4 trillion tax cut bill later this afternoon.

Cornyn, McConnell on tax reform: We’ve got this

Really? It didn't look that way yesterday evening when three of their Republican colleagues nearly derailed the tax reform bill on a procedural vote. After intense negotiations this morning and a little horse-trading, though, John Cornyn told reporters that GOP leadership have 50 votes whipped for the bill's final vote, expected later today or early tomorrow: Pressed if that means GOP leadership has the 50 votes needed to let Vice President Pence break a tie, he added "yes."

Sen. Jeff Flake announces support for tax bill; deal involves work on DACA

Sen. Jeff Flake of Arizona, one of the last remaining GOP holdouts on the Senate's tax-cut plan, announced Friday he will support the bill in exchange for work on a fix for certain illegal immigrants often brought into the country as children - a hot-button issue as lawmakers also work on year-end spending bills. Mr. Flake said he wanted to get a firm commitment for work "on a growth-oriented legislative solution to enact fair and permanent protections for DACA recipients," and to eliminate what he described as one of the budget gimmicks GOP leaders are using to bring down the cost of their bill.

Senate GOP hustles to meet tax bill holdouts’ demands

Senate Republicans are stepping quickly to meet competing demands of holdout GOP senators for a tax overhaul package expected to add $1 trillion to the nation's deficit over 10 years. The Republicans eye a crucial final vote Friday on the $1.4 trillion Senate bill carrying the hopes of President Donald Trump and the Republican Party to preserve their majorities in next year's elections.

Senate GOP could scale back tax cuts

By MARCY GORDON and STEPHEN OHLEMACHER Associated Press WASHINGTON - Senate Republicans weighed scaling back the tax cuts in their massive package to secure crucial support as congressional analysts said Thursday the legislation would add $1 trillion to the nation's debt over the next decade.

U.S. stocks gain on tax outlook as treasuries drop

Santa Claus visited the trading floor of the New York Stock Exchange, in Nov. 2015, before the opening bell. Stocks have already exceeded most expectations in 2017, and it looks like Santa Claus will drop by to give investors another gift before the year comes to a close.

Trump signals openness to changes in GOP tax plan

President Donald Trump, left, waves as he walks with first lady Melania Trump, right, and their son Barron Trump on the South Lawn of the White House in Washington, Sunday, Nov. 26, 2017, after returning from Palm Springs, Fla., where they spent the Thanksgiving holiday. less President Donald Trump, left, waves as he walks with first lady Melania Trump, right, and their son Barron Trump on the South Lawn of the White House in Washington, Sunday, Nov. 26, 2017, after returning from ... more WASHINGTON - President Donald Trump said Monday changes to the Republican tax bill are coming, as he looks to win over holdout GOP senators in an effort to pass the package by the end of the year.

Sen. Jeff Flake’s son files lawsuit against Joe ArpaioNew York Daily News

The son of Arizona's Republican Sen. Jeff Flake filed a lawsuit against Joe Arpaio claiming the former sheriff pursued criminal charges for publicity and political gain. Austin Flake claims the notorious Maricopa County sheriff pursued felony animal cruelty charges against him and his ex-wife in an attempt to damage his father's political career, according to the malicious-prosecution lawsuit.

Joe Arpaio Pressed Charges To Hurt Jeff Flake Politically, Lawsuit Argues

Former Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio has been hit with a lawsuit claiming he maliciously pressed charges against a member of Jeff Flake 's family to hurt the Republican Arizona senator politically. President Donald Trump pardoned Arpaio in August after the former sheriff was convicted of criminal contempt for willfully violating a federal judge's order and unlawfully detaining individuals solely based on suspicions about their legal status.

GOP sidesteps shutdown attempts in push to pass unfinished reform plans

President Donald Trump and his congressional leaders plan a meeting Tuesday to discuss how to avoid a shutdown and work through their legislative to-do list before a Christmas deadline. President Donald Trump and his congressional leaders plan a meeting Tuesday to discuss how to avoid a shutdown and work through their legislative to-do list before a Christmas deadline.

How #piegate is the latest example of the Trump administration’s…

White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders takes reporters' questions at a news conference in the White House briefing room this month. White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders takes reporters' questions at a news conference in the White House briefing room this month.

Congress coming back to crush of business in a fraught time

The crush of unfinished business facing lawmakers when they return to the Capitol would be daunting even if Washington were functioning at peak efficiency. It's an agenda whose core items - tax cuts, a potential government shutdown, lots of leftover spending bills - could unravel just as easily as advance in factionalism, gamesmanship and a toxic political environment.

Trump to meet with Senate Republicans ahead of crucial tax votes

President Donald Trump will meet with Senate Republicans on Tuesday ahead of crucial votes in the GOP effort to pass a massive tax cut package, as conservatives move even closer to notching a major legislative victory. The meeting will come during a weekly lunch Republicans hold as they go over their agenda.

Egypt: Militants kill at least 235 in attack on Sinai mosque

The suspect in the fatal shooting of a Texas state trooper during a Thanksgiving Day traffic stop has been charged with capital murder of a law enforcement officer. The suspect in the fatal shooting of a Texas state trooper during a Thanksgiving Day traffic stop has been charged with capital murder of a law enforcement officer.

37 of 38 economists said the GOP tax plans would grow the debt. The 38th misread the question.

An overwhelming majority of academic economists say in a new survey that the Republican tax proposals would cause America's debt to grow by one critical measure. Thirty-seven of 38 experts surveyed by the University of Chicago's Initiative on Global Markets agreed that the GOP tax bills in Congress would cause U.S. debt to increase "substantially" faster than the economy.

Attention, fence-sitting Republican senators: Here’s what’s at stake in the tax vote

Jared Bernstein, a former chief economist to Vice President Joe Biden, is a senior fellow at the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities and author of 'The Reconnection Agenda: Reuniting Growth and Prosperity'. In a song about the plight of the leftists in the Spanish Civil War against General Francisco Franco, the great musical satirist Tom Lehrer sang : "Though he may have won all the battles, we had all the good songs."

Trump mocks Jeff Flake and says his career is ‘toast’

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