The Republican-led U.S. Senate approved a sweeping, $1.5 trillion tax bill in the small hours of Wednesday morning (December 20), moving their party and President Donald Trump a step closer to the largest overhaul of the U.S. tax code in more than 30 years.
The victory, expected to be sealed within hours, will not come without embarrassment for Republicans, who tripped up on a last-minute procedural snag that forced them to schedule a re-vote by the House of Representatives later in the day.
The bill slashes taxes for corporations and wealthy taxpayers, revamps how the United States taxes multinational companies and creates a tax deduction for the owners of “pass-through” businesses, ranging from mom-and-pop stores to large real estate and financial enterprises.
The debt-financed bill offers temporary tax rate cuts for some individuals and families, while sharply reducing the number of Americans who itemize deductions on their tax returns and cutting back the number and scope of many available deductions.
Ahead of the vote, Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer called the bill, “a disgrace.”
