Swordsmyth
10-20-2017, 06:58 PM
The House Freedom Caucus is willing to give its much-needed votes in support of the Senate GOP’s budget — but first Speaker Paul Ryan must commit to a floor vote on tax reform far sooner than currently planned.
The House conservatives decided on the stance on a conference call Friday, according to GOP sources.
The budget could see a floor vote as soon as next week. In exchange for their votes, the Freedom Caucus wants a promise that GOP tax writers will hold their first committee markup the following week, with a House floor vote on the tax bill in the second week of November.
Leadership sources say that timetable would be virtually impossible. Ryan said this week that the House would pass the tax bill by "early November." It is unclear whether the Freedom Caucus is willing to block the budget if it doesn't get the schedule it wants on taxes.
The House and Senate need to clear identical budgets before Republicans can pass a tax bill under fast-track procedures that can evade Democratic filibusters.
The Senate passed a budget late Thursday that veers substantially from the House blueprint — adding $1.5 trillion to the deficit to pay for tax cuts with no plans for spending cuts that are included in the House proposal.
In the final hour before the Senate vote, GOP budget leaders unveiled a deal that would avert a contentious conference committee. Under their plan, the House would simply take up and pass the Senate’s budget with the minor tweaks pitched by Black.
House sources say conservatives are likely to swallow most of the Senate budget’s positions, given their desire to move quickly to tax reform. The House Freedom Caucus and the Republican Study Committee had been pushing for a quicker timetable, which the latest budget agreement allows.
Freedom Caucus Chairman Mark Meadows hinted Thursday evening that he could throw his weight behind the deal if it helped cut corners for tax writers.
More at: http://www.politico.com/story/2017/10/20/freedom-caucus-senate-budget-tax-reform-244002
The House conservatives decided on the stance on a conference call Friday, according to GOP sources.
The budget could see a floor vote as soon as next week. In exchange for their votes, the Freedom Caucus wants a promise that GOP tax writers will hold their first committee markup the following week, with a House floor vote on the tax bill in the second week of November.
Leadership sources say that timetable would be virtually impossible. Ryan said this week that the House would pass the tax bill by "early November." It is unclear whether the Freedom Caucus is willing to block the budget if it doesn't get the schedule it wants on taxes.
The House and Senate need to clear identical budgets before Republicans can pass a tax bill under fast-track procedures that can evade Democratic filibusters.
The Senate passed a budget late Thursday that veers substantially from the House blueprint — adding $1.5 trillion to the deficit to pay for tax cuts with no plans for spending cuts that are included in the House proposal.
In the final hour before the Senate vote, GOP budget leaders unveiled a deal that would avert a contentious conference committee. Under their plan, the House would simply take up and pass the Senate’s budget with the minor tweaks pitched by Black.
House sources say conservatives are likely to swallow most of the Senate budget’s positions, given their desire to move quickly to tax reform. The House Freedom Caucus and the Republican Study Committee had been pushing for a quicker timetable, which the latest budget agreement allows.
Freedom Caucus Chairman Mark Meadows hinted Thursday evening that he could throw his weight behind the deal if it helped cut corners for tax writers.
More at: http://www.politico.com/story/2017/10/20/freedom-caucus-senate-budget-tax-reform-244002