White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt revealed on Thursday the Trump administration’s “tax priorities,” saying President Donald Trump will work with Congress to pass the largest middle-class tax cut in American history.
Speaking to reporters outside the White House, Leavitt provided a list of Trump’s tax cut priorities after the president spoke to Republican lawmakers. The administration’s priorities include no tax on tips, no tax on seniors’ Social Security, no tax on overtime pay, a renewal of Trump’s 2017 middle-class tax cuts, an adjustment of the SALT cap, elimination of tax breaks for billionaire sports team owners, closure of the carried interest loophole, and tax cuts for products made in America.
“This will be the largest tax cut in history for middle-class working Americans,” Leavitt said. “The president is committed to working with Congress to get this done.”
Trump met privately with Republican leaders at the White House on Thursday to hash out a plan for tax cuts and spending, the Associated Press reported. House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) initially committed to passing tax cuts in the House by the end of April, but as that deadline quickly approaches, lawmakers are debating a short-term solution for tax cuts. Senate Republicans appear to be prioritizing legislation on funding for a wall along the U.S.-Mexico border and other immigration issues before addressing tax cuts later this year, according to the AP.
“We’re stuck in the mud,” Rep. Byron Donald (R-FL) told CNBC on Wednesday. “There’s a lot of, what do they call it, paralysis of analysis? And I think at this point, we need to just make a clear decision.”
Rep. Chip Roy (R-TX) said, “We have had conversations, including last night, about, do we do five-year tax policy? Do we do five-year policy for some, permanent/ten-year for others? I think we’re working on that. Those are the levers to pull to try to figure out the math.”
Hardline conservatives, such as Roy, want the tax cuts to be coupled with plans to go after the national debt or keep a neutral deficit.
