Close House Vote May Not Bode Well for Tax Overhaul

The House has narrowly passed a $4 trillion budget that clears a key hurdle toward President Trump's goal of cutting taxes, per the AP. The 216-212 vote allows Republicans to begin work on a $1.5 trillion tax cut and move it through Congress without fear of blocking tactics by Democrats. Legislators from "high-tax" states such as New York had hoped to derail the tax overhaul through the budget vote, because they fear the eventual elimination of state and local deductions that would hit their residents hard, notes CNBC.

They fell short, but the close vote suggests that the tax overhaul faces a difficult path, reports the New York Times. Included in the 212 "no" votes were 20 Republicans, and more than half were from New York and New Jersey. "This is a big issue, and it has to be resolved," said GOP Rep. Tom MacArthur of New Jersey before the vote. "Tax reform is good for the country; it's just not good for the country when it's on the back of six states. That's the problem."

(More House of Representatives stories.)