A Look At The Senate GOP Tax Plan

President Donald Trump says he’s considering a higher corporate tax rate than what Senate Republicans approved early Saturday morning. We’ll break down what’s in the Senate plan and discuss what comes next. We’ll also examine former national security adviser Michael Flynn’s guilty plea of lying to the FBI.

On his way to New York on Saturday, Trump told reporters that the final tax rate paid by corporations may wind up being 22 percent instead of the 20 percent rate lawmakers agreed to. On Friday, the Senate rejected a proposal to bump it up to 21 percent in exchange for more tax breaks for working families.

The bill passed the Senate at about 2 a.m. ET Saturday by a vote of 51 to 49. Bob Corker of Tennessee was the lone Republican to vote against it out of concerns it would drive up the deficit. An analysis by the Joint Committee on Taxation projected the plan would add more than $1 trillion to the deficit over the next decade.

In addition to lowering the corporate tax rate from 35 to 20 percent, the plan changes the rates for the seven individual tax brackets, nearly doubles the standard deduction, kills the state and local income tax deduction and repeals Obamacare’s individual mandate.

As early as Monday, both chambers will set up a conference committee to hash out the differences between the Senate plan and the version passed by the House last month. President Trump has called for a final bill to land on his desk by Christmas.

As for Flynn, his plea deal came about a month after special counsel Robert Mueller unveiled charges against two former Trump campaign officials and said a third had pleaded guilty to lying to the FBI. Mueller is investigating whether there was collusion between Trump’s campaign and Russia.

How do you feel about the Senate’s tax bill? Is this a step a forward or backward for the economy? Should the corporate tax rate be higher than 20 percent or is that about right? What do you think of repealing Obamacare’s individual mandate? What particularly pleases or concerns you? Let us know at 1-800-642-1234 or ideas@wpr.org. You can also tweet us @wprmornings or post on the Ideas Network Facebook page.