President Trump’s flirtation with allowing tax breaks for the wealthiest Americans to expire is going over like a lead balloon among Republicans.
Sen. John Barrasso said Sunday that as a conservative, he doesn’t want to “increase taxes on anybody,” days after Mr. Trump suggested he is open to the idea if it helps pass his ’big, beautiful bill’ through the GOP-led Congress.
“I am against raising taxes on anyone,” Mr. Barrasso, Wyoming Republican, said on NBC’s “Meet the Press.” We’re working the bill through the process.”
“We’re ironing out the details right now,” Mr. Barrasso said. We’re going to get a bill passed and signed by the president that’s going to put more money in people’s pockets and give them the certainty that taxes aren’t going to go up.”
House Speaker Mike Johnson, Louisiana Republican, wants to pass legislation through the House by Memorial Day. GOP leaders want to hammer out a final deal with the Senate and pass it on to Mr. Trump by July 4.
However, Republicans are facing various challenges, including concerns over proposed cuts to Medicaid and a controversial tax deduction for state and local taxes, known as SALT.
Mr. Trump raised some eyebrows last week when he said he would “love to” allow the Trump tax cuts to expire on the wealthiest Americans.
“You are giving up something up top to make people in the middle-income and low-income brackets save more,” he said. “So it is really a redistribution, and I am willing to do it if they want. I would love to be able to give people in the lower bracket a big break by giving up what I have.”
Mr. Trump said he has been warned that signing off on a tax increase would hurt him like it hurt former President George H.W. Bush when he broke his “read my lips, no new taxes” pledge.
“But he lost because of Ross Perot,” Mr. Trump said. “He didn’t lose because of that statement.”
Mr. Trump also touched on the subject on social media, saying he would “graciously accept” a “’tiny’ tax increase for the rich.”
“In any event, Republicans should probably not do it, but I’m OK if they do!!!” he posted.
Marc Thiessen, a former speechwriter for former President George W. Bush, said it is mind-blowing that Mr. Trump is playing footsie with a tax increase.
“The idea that the Republican Party would have a tax increase in an all-Republican bill … is insanity,” Mr. Thiessen said on “Fox News Sunday.”
Mr. Thiessen pointed out that former President George H.W. Bush broke his tax pledge to win votes from Democrats who controlled both chambers of Congress.
