Via The Guardian:
The Senate has approved a multi-trillion dollar budget that Donald Trump has called a “first step towards massive tax cuts”, a largely symbolic move that sets the stage for Republicans to rewrite the US tax code without a single Democratic vote.
The Senate voted 51-49 to pass the budget resolution, a blueprint of trillions of dollars in federal spending over the next decade.
Passage of the resolution keeps Republicans on track to pass tax reform, though many hurdles remain. They are still in the process of drafting their tax plan and they have not accounted for where the cuts will come from.
Republicans, who control both chambers of Congress and the White House, are under mounting pressure to pass a tax reform bill after repeatedly failing to repeal the Affordable Care Act this year. Republicans have sold the plan as a “once-in-a-generation” opportunity to overhaul an outdated tax system while Democrats have called it “ Robin Hood in reverse”.
The non-binding resolution lays out Congress’ spending priorities over the next 10 years. But most importantly for GOP priorities, the measure unlocks a special parliamentary procedure that will allow Republicans to cut $1.5tn in taxes over the next decade with just 50 votes – as opposed to 60 – in the Senate, where they hold a two-seat majority.
That also suggests that they will have the numbers to get tax reform through.
Bad for humans, good for US shares and dollar.
