“Phase Two”: Trump, House Republicans Push to Make Individual Tax Cuts Permanent

President Donald Trump and Republicans in the House of Representatives are gearing up for “Phase Two,” a push to make tax cuts for individuals permanent. The move puts Democratic lawmakers in a precarious situation.

House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Kevin Brady, R-Texas, said he intends to release new proposals.

“We are exploring what good new ideas can be brought forward in tax reform,” he said Friday on Fox Business Network’s “Varney & Co.”

“It will lead with permanence,” he said. “The tax cuts for families and small businesses were long term, but they weren’t permanent. We think that’s important for growth and certainty.”

In December, the president signed the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, the first overhaul to the U.S. tax code in 31 years. The president’s signature tax reform legislation didn’t receive a single Democratic vote in either chamber and is now supported by the majority of Americans, with larger margins among voters in battleground states.

“We’re actually going for a phase two, which will help in addition to the middle class, will help companies, and it’s going to be something I think very special,” President Trump said at an event in Missouri last Wednesday.

As People’s Pundit Daily (PPD) and others reported, the TCJA has resulted in millions of Americans receiving bonuses, wage increases and other related benefits. Roughly 85% of American workers received a cut to their tax burden and 90% received more money in their paychecks, while less than 5% saw a hike.

The latter group is mostly wealthy, higher-earning taxpayers. The Personal Income and Outlays report from the Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) confirmed the near-immediate rise in wages due to the TCJA.

House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-N.Y., referred to wage increases and other announced tax reform-related benefits as crumbs. Yet, many Democrats in the House and Senate claimed to have opposed the bill based on the permanency of individual tax relief.

“I am 100 percent behind that and would support it and even help promote it,” said Rep. Mark Walker (R-N.C.), Chairman of the conservative Republican Study Committee told The Hill last week. “Democrats said all the time that these tax cuts should have been permanent, so I would expect them to support that legislation.”

Meanwhile, Senate Democrats led with a proposal to run on a massive tax hike and $1 trillion in new spending.