Republican leadership in the House is promising to pass the Senate’s budget, a move that will allow GOP senators to push for a comprehensive overhaul of the U.S. tax code without fear of Democratic opposition derailing their efforts.
House Ways and Means Chairman Kevin Brady said Tuesday at an event in downtown Washington that the House will pass the Senate’s budget. “Yes, we are in a good position” to pass the Senate’s budget, a budget he thinks will “accelerate tax reform.”
Speaker of the House Paul Ryan said at his weekly Tuesday morning press conference that the House will vote on the Senate’s budget Thursday and will likely roll out a tax reform bill next week. The speaker also hinted that tax reform could get done by Thanksgiving.
WATCH:
Senators came to an agreement late Thursday evening on a budget measure that will allow Republicans to continue pushing for a comprehensive overhaul of the U.S. tax code without fear of Democratic opposition derailing their efforts.
The Senate passed its 2018 fiscal year budget in a contentious 51-49 vote. Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky was the only Republican senator to vote against the budget. Paul wanted more cuts to defense spending in an effort, according to the senator, to help cut down on the nation’s growing federal debt–a figure that now tops $20 trillion.
The $4 trillion budget proposal includes Senate budget reconciliation rules, which allow leadership to pass legislation with a simple majority, bypassing filibusters from Democrats altogether. Under the new budget, Republicans now only need 50 yes votes to shepherd tax reform through the Senate, with Vice President Mike Pence acting as the tiebreaker.
Republicans are currently trying to push tax reform after their failed 9-month long attempt to repeal, replace and replace and even fundamentally tweak Obamacare. The GOP has a slim 52-48 majority in the Senate, which does not allow them much wiggle room to lose members of their own party.
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