[van id=”politics/2017/12/20/donald-trump-cabinet-meeting-sot.cnn”]
WASHINGTON (AP) — Republicans in Congress have delivered an epic overhaul of U.S. tax laws to President Donald Trump, bringing generous tax cuts for corporations and the wealthiest Americans, and billions to be added to the national debt.
The $1.5 trillion package, billed as a huge boon for the middle class and a spark to economic growth, provides smaller tax cuts for middle- and low-income families.
The GOP-dominated House voted — a second time — along party lines on Wednesday to approve the complex legislation, following a narrow vote after midnight in the Senate.
The measure slashes the corporate income tax rate from 35 percent to 21 percent. The tax cuts for business are permanent, but reductions for individuals and families expire after a decade. The standard deduction used by around two-thirds of Americans will nearly double to $24,000 for married couples.
President Donald Trump is celebrating the GOP tax legislation, claiming it fulfills his campaign promise to repeal the Affordable Care Act.
Speaking during a Cabinet meeting, he says: “Obamacare has been repealed in this bill.”
But the bill only repeals the individual mandate, which imposes a tax penalty for failing to purchase health insurance — a significant, but small part of the law — rather than the extensive legislation passed by his predecessor.
Trump-backed GOP efforts to undo the health care legislation failed repeatedly earlier this year, and congressional lawmakers are debating needed fixes to the bill to stabilize the individual marketplace.
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