WASHINGTON (Reuters)-Republican parliamentarians advanced with elements of a comprehensive budget package of US President Donald Trump on Wednesday after a debate that lasted all night, when an important committee voted throughout party lines to approve tax cuts that will add trillions of dollars to the country’s debt.
The 26-19 vote of the House of Representatives Committee and Modes, which writes tax laws, represents an initial victory for Republicans, who still have many obstacles to overcome before bringing the wide packet of Trump table cuts to be sanctioned as law.
The vote occurred after a debate that lasted all night and saw at least one parliamentarian fall asleep. Republicans rejected a series of changes proposed by Democrats, who criticized the bill as a donation to the rich, reducing health and food benefits to the poor and worsening the country’s financial situation.
A separate chamber committee was still debating a republican proposal to restrict the eligibility for the Medicaid Health Plan, which covers 71 million low-income Americans, with a scheduled vote for the end of the day.
This will save $ 715 billion to the federal government and take 7.7 million people from the program, according to the independent Congress budget office. Police escorted at least five protesters, including three in wheelchairs at the beginning of the debate on Tuesday.
Trump’s plan will add trillions of dollars to the country’s debt, which, at $ 36.2 trillion, currently equals 127% of GDP. The package provides for an additional $ 4 trillion loan, although the total cost is uncertain so far.
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He would extend tax cuts approved in Trump’s first term, which will expire at the end of the year, and add new tax incentives for workers, retirees and private schools.
To compensate for part of the cost, the package will cancel Green Energy Programs approved by President Joe Biden.
Republicans will need to stay together to approve the House bill, where they have a narrow majority of 220 to 213 votes. The proposal will also need to be approved in the Senate, which Republicans control 53 to 47 seats.
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The deadline for raising the country’s debt ceiling, which will approach in the middle of the years, is also pressuring Republicans to work quickly.
The package will increase the $ 4 trillion debt limit and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent asked parliamentarians to act until mid -July to avoid a default that would shake the global economy.
