Tax cuts for Christmas

WASHINGTON—The GOP made good Wednesday on a major promise by passing sweeping tax cuts, and now Republicans have to sell the reforms to the American people.

The most significant rewrite of the U.S. tax code passed without a single Democratic vote or a public hearing. Republicans tweaked the bill all the way up until the same day it cleared. The legislative lift marks the largest reform of the tax system since 1986, and Republicans did it in record time. House leaders unveiled the first draft of the legislation Nov. 2, and Congress passed the bill onto President Donald Trump on Dec. 20, just in time for Christmas.

The bill changed so many times over the last six weeks that most Americans aren’t sure of the legislation’s details and how it will affect them. But Republicans aren’t worried about that; right now, it’s time to celebrate.

“Results are going to make this popular,” House Speaker Paul Ryan, R-Wis., declared this week.

The final bill, nearly 500 pages long, permanently lowers the corporate tax rate from 35 to 21 percent. Originally the Trump administration envisioned reducing the seven individual tax brackets down to three. The final bill keeps seven but at different rates: 10, 12, 22, 24, 32, 35, and 37 percent for top earners.

About 48 percent of households will receive a tax cut of greater than $500 starting in 2019, according to the Joint Committee on Taxation. Those savings are projected to dwindle in the following years. The cuts to individual rates expire after 2025—a concession Republicans made to comply with Senate rules.

Another major feature of the bill is that it kills Obamacare’s individual health insurance mandate after 2019.

“We—I hate to say this—but we essentially repealed Obamacare because we got rid of the individual mandate, which was terrible,” Trump asserted Wednesday.

The president celebrated with congressional Republicans at the White House Wednesday, but voters still aren’t sure how they feel about the legislation.

A Monmouth University poll released Monday found 47 percent of respondents disapproved of the legislation, and only 26 percent approved. Nearly a third either had no opinion or were waiting for more information. A Politico/Morning Consult survey found a 42 percent plurality of voters supported the legislation, and 39 percent opposed it.

Democrats say most Americans aren’t warm to the tax rewrite because they believe Republicans carved out benefits for the rich.

“The Republican tax bill will cement the Republican Party as the party of the wealthy and the party of corporations, against the middle class and the working people of this country,” Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., said Wednesday.

But the GOP isn’t going to let critics rain on its parade—even if voters aren’t confident in the legislation yet.

“My view of this: If we can’t sell this to the American people, we ought to go into another line of work,” said Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky.

Suspicious of spy tactics

A group of bipartisan senators skewered one of the government’s largest spy programs days before a deadline to reauthorize it.

Sens. Rand Paul, R-Ky., and Ron Wyden, D-Ore., held a joint conference with a group of other lawmakers to warn against reauthorizing Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA). Section 702 grants the National Security Agency (NSA) authority to conduct surveillance on foreign targets outside the United States without a warrant, even if Americans are part of that communication. It’s set to expire Dec. 31.

Civil liberties advocates contend the authorization gives the government too much reach into the private conversations of American citizens. Specifically, they point to the “backdoor search” feature that allows federal investigators to search through data incidentally collected on Americans for investigations.

“The intelligence community in our country needs more oversight not less,” Paul said.

American intelligence officers may collect data on foreigners at a less-than-constitutional standard. The United States does not have to provide a warrant or due process to listen to foreigners’ phone calls or review their web histories, but Paul argues the government should have a higher standard for U.S. citizens.

Both Wyden and Paul have vowed to vote against an end-of-the-year spending bill that permanently reauthorizes Section 702.

Congress has not scheduled any time to debate the program this year despite intelligence agencies’ citing it as a vital resource to their work.

Other lawmakers support passing a short-term reauthorization until Congress can find a compromise solution next year.

“This is one of those issues that is neither Democratic nor Republican,” Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, said. “This is about the security and the privacy of the American people.” —E.W.

Lack of experience

Matthew Petersen withdrew his nomination to be a U.S. district court judge this week after stumbling in his confirmation hearing. The move comes after a video of him failing to answer basic legal questions from Sen. John Kennedy, R-La., went viral over the weekend. Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, D-R.I., summed up the cringe-worthy account: “Hoo-boy.”

President Donald Trump nominated Petersen to fill a vacancy on the district court in Washington, D.C. Petersen wrote in his withdrawal letter that he was honored by the nomination but he would be too much of a distraction to continue the process.

“I had hoped my nearly two decades of public service might carry more weight than my two worst minutes on television,” he wrote to Trump. “However, I am no stranger to political realities, and I do not wish to be a continued distraction from the important work of your administration and the Senate.”

Most Senate Republicans have thrown Trump nominees softball questions during confirmation hearings, but Kennedy has often bucked that trend. He told a Louisiana television station he has no regrets about embarrassing Petersen.

“Just because you’ve seen My Cousin Vinny doesn’t qualify you to be a federal judge,” Kennedy said. “And he has no litigation experience. And my job on the Judiciary Committee is to catch him. I would strongly suggest he not give up his day job.”

As a member of the Federal Election Commission, Petersen previously worked with White House counsel Donald McGahn, who has been one of the top people helping the president select judicial nominees. —E.W.

Ex-Im Bank nominee rejected

A GOP-controlled Senate committee rejected President Donald Trump’s nominee to lead the Export-Import Bank on Tuesday. Two Republican senators—Tim Scott of South Carolina and Mike Rounds of South Dakota—joined Democrats on the Senate Banking Committee to sink the nomination of former Rep. Scott Garrett, R-N.J.

The Export-Import Bank provides loans, insurance on credit, and loan guarantees to help other countries purchase U.S. exports. While in Congress, Garrett supported abolishing the bank. Some Republicans have criticized the department for distorting markets and effectively subsidizing foreign competitors.

“We need to both reform the Export-Import Bank and ensure it continues to function as an important tool for American businesses large and small,” Scott said. “Given Mr. Garrett’s long history opposing the Ex-Im Bank, I believe it would be hard for him to accomplish both of those goals.”

Garrett’s rejection marked the first time in 31 years a nominee failed to clear a committee where the majority was the same party as the president. —E.W.

DACA for January?

Sen. Jeff Flake, R-Ariz., announced Wednesday he has a commitment from Senate leaders to vote on compromise immigration legislation in January to address the fate of thousands of young illegal immigrants. President Donald Trump said in September he would wind down the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program March 5. He asked Congress to legislate a solution, but there’s been little progress. Passionate lawmakers on both sides had hoped to vote on a legislative fix for the nearly 800,000 DACA recipients before the end of the year, but that appears doubtful. Instead, according to Flake, there will likely be action next month on a bill being negotiated now. —E.W.