President-elect Donald Trump has signaled he plans to focus the first months of his administration on passing border security legislation, which means another main goal — extending his 2017 tax cut package — will have to take a back seat.
This means that the estimated $4.6 trillion cost of extending the tax cuts (which primarily benefit the richest Americans) could cause potential chaos among House and Senate Republicans in the 119th Congress. Adding that much to the federal deficit is likely to ruffle the feathers of House Freedom Caucus members like Rep. Chip Roy (R-Texas), who has indicated that he wouldn't vote for any new federal spending without offsetting budget cuts.
And as Politico reports, even Republicans are likely to be exhausted after a lengthy months-long battle over the immigration system and may not have the stomach for back-to-back legislative slugfests. One unnamed Republican lobbyist told the outlet that the timing of the tax cut negotiations could risk torpedoing them altogether.
READ MORE: 'Biggest challenge': Even Republicans are nervous about Trump's $4.6 trillion tax cut
"Can you immediately turn around and do another bill and break even more arms?" The lobbyist asked.
Republicans' majorities in both the House and Senate are razor-thin, which means that both the border and the tax cut bills could run into a wall when individual members have bones to pick with the finer points of the legislation. Politico's Brian Faler observed that Senate Majority Leader John Thune's (R-S.D.) three-seat majority and House Speaker Mike Johnson's (R-La.) potential one-seat majority — assuming Reps. Elise Stefanik (R-N.Y.) and Mike Waltz (R-Fla.) join the Trump administration — give members a lot more "leverage" to insist on "their own pet provisions."
"Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) recently proposed a big, pricey increase in the child credit, to a maximum $5,000, from the current $2,000, per kid," Faler wrote. "Rep. Darin LaHood (R-Ill.), meanwhile, just rolled out a plan seconding Trump’s bid to cut income taxes on Americans living abroad."
The 2017 tax cuts are due to expire at the end of 2025, meaning Republicans may have less time than they would like to get an extension to Trump's desk. Republicans have already proposed several controversial pay-fors to offset the $4.6 trillion extension, including the repeal of President Joe Biden's popular student debt relief programs. If the extension is signed into law, Americans making $450,000 and up would see their incomes increase by 3.2%, while the richest 1% — who make $1 million a year or more – would get an average tax cut of nearly $70,000.
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Click here to read Politico's article in full.